Kelria's Story
by SmallTownRebel
Summary: Sequel to The Seventh Year. Following mostly Kelria and Remus through the years following Hogwarts
1. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer**: If you recognise it, it's not mine. If you don't, it's mine! _

_Well, ladies and gents, here it is. Back by popular demand...If you haven't read the first story in this series, _The Seventh Year_, you should probably do that or you won't understand this one! You have been warned! And for those of you who have read the first one, there are a lot of loose ends to be tied up...so just give me time, okay? Don't start asking about the dreams right off, that'll take a while, okay? Thanks! Enjoy,_

_Yana_

**

* * *

Chapter 1: An Assignment**

Kelria Song looked haggard as she exited the Ministry of Magic building, glad to be done for the day. It had been a long, exhausting day, and all she wanted to do was go home and put her feet up.

"Kel!"

She sighed and turned around, pasting a smile on her face when she saw Lily Evans--_Potter, Kel, Lily Potter_--approaching, looking excited about something.

"Hey, Lil, what's up?"

"James and I bought a house!" she said excitedly, trying to catch her breath.

"That's great, Lily, congratulations!"

"Thanks. We're having a party next Friday, you know sort of a housewarming thing, and I was wondering if you and Remus would like to come."

"Sure, we'll be there for sure, Lily," Kelria replied.

"Awesome! Have you seen Yana? I wanted to catch her before she left."

"Sorry, Lil, you missed her. Sirius picked her up on that bike of his, and I don't know when they'll be back."

"Oh well, I'm sure she'll be in tomorrow, I'll catch her then."

"It's not likely, Lily, as tomorrow's Saturday. Yana probably won't be in. Like I said, she went off with Sirius. The likeliness of them being back before Monday morning is zero to none."

"Oh yeah. Well, I guess I'll catch her Monday morning, then."

"Yep. So, how have you been, Lily? I hardly ever get to talk to you anymore!"

"I know! School's a lot of work, though."

"Yeah, I know. It's a good thing we all _really_ want to be aurors, otherwise I'm sure at least two of us would have dropped out before now."

"Yeah, you're probably right."

"So, you're doing well?"

Lily nodded, grinning. "This baby is no trouble, Kelria! No kicking when I'm trying to sleep, nothing like that! Alice is going mad; her baby kicks all the time, and just generally keeps her awake when she wants to sleep."

Kelria laughed. "Yeah, babies tend to do that."

"Oh! We found out that it's a boy!" Lily said excitedly.

"Congratulations, Lily!" Kelria said, genuinely happy for her friend.

"Thanks! James is bound and determined to name him James."

Kelria laughed. "Yep, that sounds like James."

"I told him he can't, because then he'll end up being "JJ", and I don't like that. So he's consented to give him a different first name…but he's absolutely adamant that the middle name has to be James."

Kelria nodded. "That's James Potter for ya."

"Indeed. Anyway, I should let you go. See you later, Kelria!"

"See you, Lily," Kelria replied.

After Lily had disappeared, Kelria spun on the spot and disapparated, reappearing right in her living room, and plopping down on the couch.

"I just want to sit and do nothing for the rest of the night," she said aloud.

"That's a pity," a voice replied from the kitchen, startling her out of her wits, "Because I had big plans for tonight."

She didn't even have the strength to stand as her boyfriend entered the room with a big smile on his face.

"Hey, Remus."

"Hey, beautiful. I was going to ask how your day was, but from the sounds of things, it wasn't so great."

"No, it really wasn't. We were at the Ministry again, and they've given us an assignment…Merlin, Remus, I don't even think the nine of us are going to be able to solve this one!"

"Nine? What's the assignment?"

"Yeah, we get a full squad, isn't that cool? James got elected the leader, of course…no one would have it any other way. So, in our squad it's me, Yana, Lily, James, Frank, Aaron Marsh,--he was in Ravenclaw in our year, do you remember him?-- Emily-Hope Jeffries,--she was on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, she's the one I had that hex war with the match Yana got sick--Harvey McArthur,--he was in Hufflepuff--and Kennedy Mora--he was on the Ravenclaw team too. And the assignment…oh, I don't even want to talk about it, it makes my head hurt just thinking about it!"

"Wow, how did that group come together?" Remus asked, leaning on the doorframe.

"We were assigned."

"Ah, I should have known."

"Yeah, you should have," Kelria agreed. "Question."

"Yes?"

"Why are you in my house?"

Remus grinned. "I'm your welcoming committee."

"I see."

"But, since you just want to, and I quote, _sit and do nothing for the rest of the night_ unquote, I will just have to eat this delicious dinner myself."

"Go ahead," Kelria groaned in reply. "I ate lunch with Yana at Marty's at like 3 this afternoon, I'm _stuffed_."

Remus frowned. "You two eat at Marty's a lot."

"Well, it's a great restaurant! They have awesome food!"

"Yeah, _fatty_ food, Kelria!"

"Are you implying that I'm fat?" Kelria asked teasingly.

"Maybe," Remus replied, grinning at her mischievously.

"I'm insulted, Remus."

Remus laughed. "You never get insulted, Kelria."

"Well, maybe I should start then!" Kelria replied.

"Don't bother," Remus answered.

Kelria sighed, then smiled.

"What are you smirking at," Remus asked.

"Just thinking."

"About what?"

"What do you think of Yana and Sirius?"

Remus looked puzzled. "What about them?"

"Do you think they're sleeping together?" Kelria asked.

Remus looked startled. "I'm shocked that you would ask such a thing, Miss Song," he replied.

Kelria rolled her eyes. "Answer the question, Lupin."

Remus looked thoughtful for a moment, then said, "No. I don't think they are. I wouldn't put it past Sirius, but Khyana's too levelheaded. And Sirius says he isn't, so I believe him. He's not exactly ashamed to "kiss and tell", persé."

"No, that he certainly isn't," Kelria agreed. "Oh, by the way, Lily and James are having a housewarming party next Friday, we're going."

"We are?"

"Yes. Lily asked me, and I said sure."

Remus looked a little worried. "You do know next Friday's the full moon, don't you?"

Kelria looked thoughtful. "Oh, so it is. Well, I guess we're not going then."

"You can go, I just won't."

Kelria groaned. "I suppose I probably should, eh?"

"Yeah, you probably should," Remus agreed.

"Very well," Kelria sighed.

Remus grinned. "You haven't even given me a hello kiss, you realise that, Kel?"

Kelria groaned again and stood.

Remus grinned at her, but didn't move.

When Kelria reached him, he pulled her into a tight embrace.

"Hello," he murmured, kissing her.

"Hi," she replied, grinning. "How was your day?"

"Actually, not too bad," he replied. "I met with Sirius and Peter this afternoon…it was interesting."

"Mhm. What did you talk about?"

Remus shrugged. "Stuff."

"Like?"

"Stuff," Remus replied, grinning.

Kelria sighed. "Fine."

* * *

That weekend, Kelria spent every day in her den or kitchen, working on schoolwork, which included the assignment that had been assigned to the six friends. How on earth they were supposed to figure it out was beyond her. However, she knew that Khyana had some contacts they could use, and possibly someone else did as well. This was a real case, and they needed to treat it like one. It would be difficult, but if they could solve this one, they could solve anything.

When Monday morning rolled around, Kelria was feeling much more confident. They'd be fine.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: An Unfortunate Mishap**

Monday morning, Kelria had Disguises first with Khyana, James and Lily. Their professor, Menin North, was a very strict teacher who reminded them all of Professor McGonagall.

"Today we are going to be making a potion to alter the colour of your hair," Professor North began. "The instructions," he waved his wand, "Are on the board." They appeared there. "You have the remainder of the class to make this. Please be sure to read all the instructions carefully before you make the potion, because at the end of the period, you will all be taking your potions. I have the antidote at the front, so the change will not be permanent, but it will be if you do not make the potion correctly."

There was a loud scraping noise as everyone pushed their chairs back and moved to their cauldrons.

"I like my hair just the way it is," Lily complained. "Is this potion going to be safe for the baby?"

Khyana and Kelria rolled their eyes.

"Relax, Lil, I'm sure it's fine," Khyana replied.

"I'd better ask," Lily said, and trotted up to the front to inquire of the professor whether her baby would be harmed if she took this potion.

"Reminds you a bit of Hogwarts, doesn't it?" Khyana grinned, watching Lily.

"Yeah," James agreed, laughing. "Lily always had a question for the teacher."

"And now it's Yana with all the questions," Kelria said teasingly, poking her friend in the side.

"Shut up, Kel," Khyana replied, throwing her stir stick at her.

"He said it'll be fine," Lily said breathlessly, returning to the group.

"Just like I told you, eh?" Khyana answered, her eyes twinkling. Lily rolled her eyes.

For the rest of the period, the students worked diligently on their potion, checking and double checking their work.

"I don't think I did this right," Khyana (who had never been much good at potions) said worriedly when the period was almost over.

Her potion, which was supposed to be a thin, transparent pastel blue liquid, was a blue, globby mess.

"I can't eat this," she said worriedly.

"Let me look," Lily (who had, of course, concocted the potion perfectly) said, and came over to look at her friend's potion. "Oh, it's not too bad! You just forgot to add the wormwood! Here, put this in and stir it counter clockwise six times."

Khyana followed Lily's instructions, frowning, and in moments her potion was the correct colour and thickness, though it was not quite transparent.

"I'm sure it'll be fine," Lily said encouragingly.

"Time's up!" Professor North called. "Everyone take a teaspoon--no more!--of their potion, and we'll see how it goes."

The women all looked expectantly at James, who sighed.

"Why do I always have to go first?"

Lily shrugged. "Cause you're outnumbered. Eat up, darling!"

James (in a not so rare moment of immaturity) stuck his tongue out at her, then downed his potion. His hair turned immediately blonde.

"Sorry, love, blonde's not really your colour," Lily said, turning up her nose.

"Thanks, Lil. Let's see yours, then."

Lily took her potion, and her hair turned immediately brown.

"Not much of a change," she said, fingering it.

"Not really," James agreed. "Kel's turn."

Kelria shrugged and took her potion, her hair turning immediately pink.

"Hm." She said, looking at it. "Interesting."

"I expected brown, like Lil's," Khyana said.

"Me too," Kelria admitted. "Oh well. Your turn, Yana."

Khyana looked about to refuse, still unsure that it was done correctly, but her friends forced her and she took her potion tentatively. Her hair turned a dark auburn.

"That looks nice, Yana," Kelria said. "I like it."

"So do I, but not permanently," Khyana replied. "Get me that antidote."

The four hurried up to the front to take the antidote. Kelria and Lily's hair immediately turned back to their natural red, and James' was back to black. Khyana's, however, didn't change. She paled.

"I _knew_ it wasn't going to work!" she wailed.

"What seems to be the problem here?" Professor North asked, approaching the group.

"The antidote didn't work for Khyana," Lily said, biting her lip nervously.

"Then she didn't make the potion correctly," Professor North replied unsympathetically. "Miss Malfoy, I expect a 500 word essay on the correct composition of this potion on my desk first thing Wednesday morning, do you understand?"

"Yes, sir," Khyana said sadly.

As Professor North walked away, Kelria turned to Khyana, seething.

"That wasn't fair," she said. "It's not your fault you're no good at potions."

"Thanks, Kel, you're making the situation _so_ much better," Khyana said acidly.

"Sorry."

The four friends left the classroom together, and Khyana and Kelria headed for Stealth and Stalking (aptly named, as they really did learn how to stalk prospective suspects) class, while Lily and James went the other way to Transfiguration.

"It's not even because I'm bad at potions," Khyana said softly.

"Oh no, Khyana…"

"Yeah."

Kelria shook her head.

"Merlin, Khyana, what happened to you?" Frank said when the two friends reached the classroom.

"I hate this!" Khyana wailed. She ran off in the direction of the bathroom.

"What'd I say?" Frank asked, watching her go.

Kelria rolled her eyes. "Well, let's think, Frank. 'Merlin, Khyana' isn't exactly the best reaction, I don't think."

"Oh. Yeah." Frank said.

"Yeah," Kelria said.

"Well, what _did_ happen?" Frank demanded.

"I don't think she made the potion correctly," Kelria answered.

"Ah, I see," Frank replied.

"I don't think it looks that bad, it'll just take some getting used to is all."

"Oh no, it doesn't look _bad_, just different. I wonder how Sirius'll take it…"

* * *

At the end of the day, Khyana and Kelria were waiting outside the Ministry of Magic, where they had spent their afternoon, talking to each other, when two figures approached them. 

"Hey, ladies."

"Remus, Sirius," Kelria replied, grinning at Khyana.

"Have you seen Yana?" Sirius asked.

Khyana stifled a laugh. Kelria grinned.

"Yeah, she's actually standing in front of you."

Sirius gaped at her, then looked at Khyana.

"Merlin, Yana! What the bloody hell happened?"

Khyana hid her hurt look, but Kelria saw it just the same.

"Thanks, Sirius."

Sirius seemed to sense that he'd hurt her feelings, and looked helplessly at Kelria, who shrugged. It was rare for Khyana to get hurt or insulted, so no one really knew how to take it or react.

"Well, I should probably get going," Khyana said finally. "I have a class tonight, I'm meeting Lezley for dinner. I'll catch you up later."

As she walked away, Sirius sighed. "What did she do, Kel?"

Kelria grinned. "We made potions to change hair colour in disguises this morning, and we had to take them…and hers didn't change back when she took the antidote."

"Why not?"

"I don't think she took her potion this morning."

"WHAT?!"

"She's out. She's going to stop by Leanne's on her way home tonight and get some more."

"Good. I don't want her to not have it. I should maybe go after her…"

Kelria rolled her eyes. "It's a muggle French course, Sirius. She'll be fine."

"Well yes, but she is an auror in training, and a member of the Order…anyone could hurt her. She's very vulnerable."

Kelria snorted. "Khyana Malfoy, vulnerable? I think you need to get your head checked, Sirius. Trust me, she's going to be fine."

Sirius did not look convinced, but nor did he look like he wanted an argument, so he kept his mouth shut.

"Well, I'm going to the Potters'. Anyone coming with?"

"I'll come," Kelria replied, and Remus nodded his agreement.

"I won't be at the party on Friday, so I might as well go now."

The three friends spun on the spot and apparated to the Potters' new house in Godric's Hollow.

"Nice," Kelria hissed, as they walked up to the front door.

"Yeah, it's pretty sweet," Sirius agreed, grinning. "Come on."

He opened the door and walked in.

"Shouldn't we knock?" Kelria asked, poking her head in the door but not going any further.

"They don't care," Sirius replied. "They told me so the last time I was here. Trust me. Come on," he added, as Kelria still looked hesitant.

She sighed and entered the house.

"Anyone home?" Sirius yelled.

James appeared from the living room, followed closely by Lily, who appeared from the direction of the kitchen.

"Hey, you lot, what are you doing here?"

"Just stopped by for a visit. You got any food?"

James rolled his eyes. "Haven't you got food at your own house, Padfoot?"

"It's unlikely," Sirius replied, proceeding past the happy couple and raiding their fridge.

Lily grinned and James rolled his eyes again.

"Well, I had hoped to save the house for Friday, but I guess you're here now and there's nothing I can really do about it. How about you come in and look around?" Lily suggested, and the other two accepted gladly.

* * *

**A/N:**_ Yes, Yana is in Auror School...all will be explained in time. Maybe not in this story...the next one...I don't know, I haven't decided yet. And this isn't a cliffhanger ending, so you can't get mad at me! Well, it's not a cliffhanger to you...if you knew what was coming next you'd think it was. So, what do people think of the title for the 7th book, eh? Sounds pretty intriguing! But yeah...if you don't know the title, I can tell you...but not right now. So I'll shut up. R&R!_

_PS Professor North is supposed to be reminiscent of Professor Snape...so yeah. Now I really will shut up, I have to go to work! Byee_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: A New House and A New Worry**

The five friends spent a lovely evening together, and Kel and Lily spent a good deal of time catching up. They had, as Kel had said, rarely spoken to each other since they began their auror training, and spent a lovely two hours talking.

At about 9 o'clock, just as Sirius was starting to think he should go pick up Khyana, the phone rang. Sirius, Remus and Kelria all looked at each other oddly, and James gave an embarrassed shrug.

"Lily wanted to have one," he explained.

"Oh, we know," Kel answered. "I have your phone number…not that I'd know how to use it…" she added thoughtfully.

"Hello," Lily said, picking up the phone.

Her face suddenly changed, and she looked worried.

"What's up, Lil?" James asked, but she hushed him with a wave of his hand.

"Okay," she said into the receiver. "He's here, just a moment. Sirius," she said, covering the receiver with her hand, "It's Yana."

Sirius, having noticed Lily's face earlier, looked a little worried, but took the receiver from Lily bravely.

"Hello? Yeah…What?! Are you sure? Where are you? Don't move, I'll be right there."

Sirius hung up the phone, looking very white.

"What's happened?" Kelria asked.

"Khyana is…well, I've got to go get her, and when we come back, we'll explain. Oh I'm going to kill her!

Sirius disapparated before Kel could say "I don't think that's such a good idea, Sirius, killing your girlfriend."

"Did she say what was wrong, Lily?" Remus asked.

Lily shook her head. "All she said was that she was in trouble and she needed to speak to Sirius immediately."

"Ah well, I'm sure we'll find out whatever it was when they get back, like Sirius said," Remus replied lazily, sitting back on the couch."

"That's all you have to say, Remus?" Kelria asked, shocked. "Khyana could be _dying_!"

Remus gave his girlfriend an exasperated look. "I don't think she's dying, Kel. Even without her potion, Khyana Malfoy is not going to go down without a fight. And she wouldn't have been able to call if she was dying."

"Moony has a point," James agreed. "We'll just have to wait here until they get back."

* * *

Half an hour later, a red-faced Sirius returned to the house towing a flushed and happy Khyana behind him. 

"What's happened?" James asked, as Lily and Kelria hurried to hug Khyana.

Sirius couldn't speak for anger, but Khyana laughed and looked out from between the heads of her two friends.

"I don't see what's so funny, Khyana," Sirius managed. "You could have been _killed_!"

"Oh, but I wasn't, Sirius!" she exclaimed happily. "And now I've got a lead on our assignment!"

"What?!" James, Lily and Kelria all said together.

Khyana nodded, looking excited.

"Alright, sit down right now young lady and tell me everything!" Kelria exclaimed.

Khyana happily sat down beside Sirius, who was fairly cool, placed her hand in his and began her tale.

* * *

_Khyana left the university building in a bit of a daze. Lezley had been a bit odd lately, but to think of this…but no matter. They'd discuss it later. Right now, she needed to focus on getting home._

_Despite the fact that she knew Sirius would be absolutely furious with her, she decided to walk to five kilometres to her house outside London. She hadn't taken her potion that morning, so she couldn't apparate, so walking was her only choice unless she wanted to take the bus, which she didn't. So she set out from the university happily, whistling and thinking about Lezley's news._

_She hadn't gone more than a block when she became aware of a presence behind her. She turned around and saw a man in a black overcoat following her, not even taking pains to avoid being seen._

_Sighing and glaring, Khyana continued on her way. She was not, of course, going to take the man right to her house, so she took a little side road she had never been down before (knowing full well she'd get an earful from Lily), and continued her journey. _

_Before she knew it, she was hopelessly lost, with no chance of finding her way again. She was a bit outside of the city, but it was the opposite side from her home. Deciding she would take her chances, she walked up to the nearest house and knocked on the door._

_An elderly lady answered the door._

"_Hello, dear, can I help you?"_

_Mentally berating herself, Khyana steeled herself and asked the question._

"_Without making it too obvious that you're looking, could you possibly tell me if there is a man in a black overcoat somewhere on this street?"_

_The woman nodded. "He's across the street under the lamp. Why?"_

_Khyana swore under her breath. "May I borrow your phone?"_

"_Yes, certainly," the woman replied, looking concerned. "Please come in, Miss…?_

"_McCloy," Khyana replied, using the name she reserved for undercover Order business. "Sara McCloy."_

_Khyana followed the woman into the house, and the woman pointed out the phone to her. Starting to feel a bit nervous, Khyana approached. It would be bad if she had to ask how to use the phone…the woman would probably get suspicious. So, she picked up the receiver hesitantly and punched in the numbers Lily had given her. To her relief, there was a ringing from the phone and a moment later she heard Lily's voice._

"_Hello?"_

"_Lily, it's Sara. Don't say anything, just listen. I'm being followed, I think it might be Rookwood. I can't lose him, and I can't disappear. I need you to get a hold of Sirius and tell him to come get me."_

"_Okay. He's here, just a minute. Sirius, it's Yana."_

_A moment later Sirius' voice came through the receiver. _

"_Hello?"_

"_Sirius, it's me. I'm being followed by Rookwood. I can't lose him and I can't disappear. I need you to come get me."_

"_What?! Are you sure?"_

"_That I'm being followed? Of course!"_

" _Where are you?"_

"_Windemere. 6 Windemere, in London."_

"_Don't move, I'll be right there."_

_Sirius hung up abruptly, and Khyana turned to the woman who owned the house._

"_Thank you very much. I'll just wait outside for my boyfriend."_

"_Nonsense, dearie," the woman replied. "You can wait in here. Did you say it was Rookwood who was following you?"_

"_Yes, ma'am."_

"_Oh, I know him. He's a good friend of my neighbours, over at number 4."_

_The hair on the back of Khyana's neck stood on end. Friends of Rookwood could only mean one thing…_

"_What is the name of your neighbours?" she asked cautiously._

"_Rosier," the woman replied. "Mr and Mrs Evan Rosier."_

_Khyana paled even more than usual, then remembered something. The Rosiers were on the list for the assignment…_

"_Thank you for your hospitality, ma'am," she said, rising suddenly, "But I'm afraid I can't stay any longer. I'll wait outside for my boyfriend."_

_The woman rose her voice to protest, but Khyana was already out the door. She had some snooping to do…_

_Khyana hurried across the small lawn to the neighbours' house. Waiting for Sirius had no appeal for her; she needed to find the Rosiers. _

_She approached the house quietly and carefully. One little slip up…but she didn't think about that. If she did, she would be too scared, and she knew the others would never forgive her if she backed out…or maybe it was just she who wouldn't forgive herself…_

_She had conveniently forgotten that she couldn't use magic. It was another thing she didn't allow herself to think about, along with the fact that Sirius was likely waiting…but he could wait a while longer. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity and she wouldn't--couldn't--miss it._

_She made her way to a small window at the side of the house cautiously. She was experiencing a huge sense of déjà vu, but she continued on. Stopping to think would be a bad decision at this point._

_The window looked in on a small living room, where Evan and his wife—'_Kara, I think'_--were sitting. They appeared to be arguing about something, but Khyana couldn't figure out what it was. Kara was not facing her, but she was blocking Evan from sight so Khyana could not read their lips. _

_Finally, Kara turned her back to her husband and looked directly at Khyana, though she did not see her._

"_I do not like this, Evan," she said. "The Malfoy brat has disappeared. She is around somewhere, I know it. If she finds out our plans…"_

_Rosier snarled. "She will only discover our plans if you keep talking about them, woman. If you'd keep your mouth shut, then no one would ever discover them."_

"_I have not revealed anything important, Evan, although I may do if you continue to provoke me."_

_Rosier raised his hand to strike his wife, but she drew her wand. "Do not touch me, Evan."_

_Evan looked furious, and Khyana was pleased. There was dissention among the enemies…_

"_Evan, we are being watched," Kara said._

_Khyana ducked and did not see Evan's response. Now was a good time to leave. She hurried back to number 6, where Sirius and the old woman were talking. Sirius looked furious._

"_What's going on?" she asked._

_Sirius looked ready to kill. He grabbed her hand and pulled her onto his bike, driving away quickly._

"_Where the hell have you been?" he demanded._

"_Working," she replied. "Just take me to Lily and James' and I'll explain everything."_

"_First, we're going to make a pit-stop," Sirius replied._

_The bike lifted off the ground, and Khyana thought for the thousandth time that she much preferred a broom to Sirius' bike, but she didn't complain, not when Sirius was already ready to kill her._

"_Where?"_

"_You'll see."_

_The bike touched down in front of a house Khyana knew very well._

"_Go," Sirius said. _

_She climbed off the bike and hurried to the front door. She knocked loudly, hoping the occupant was home._

_The door opened shortly, and she breathed a sigh of relief._

"_Hello, Yana."_

"_Leanne, I can't stay for long, but I'm out of potion and it's very important that I get it right now!"_

"_Of course. Just one moment. I thought you'd be needing some soon, so I brewed some up yesterday."_

_Leanne disappeared into the house, and returned a few moments later with a large flask._

"_Here you are."_

"_Thanks, Leanne, you're the greatest."_

"_I know," Leanne grinned. "Bye, Yana."_

_Khyana hurried back to the bike and climbed on._

"_Go, Sirius, quickly."_

_Sirius took off, waving goodbye to Leanne and hurried back to Godric's Hollow._

* * *

"And so here we are," Khyana finished. 

"Why'd you make Sirius hurry so quickly away from Leanne's?" Lily asked worriedly.

Khyana sighed and looked uncomfortable. "Oh that reminds me."

She stood and grabbed her flask, hurrying to the kitchen where she poured all the contents down the drain.

"Wha…?" Sirius was speechless.

"Lily, I'm going to need you to make me some more of that, please."

"You had a perfectly good batch right there!" Sirius exclaimed.

"Actually, I didn't," Khyana replied. "Leanne is under the Imperius curse. I couldn't take that in case the Death Eaters told her to put something else in it. Oh, and that lady who's house I was at, she's been Imperiused, too."

"Oh, poor Mary," Lily said sadly.

"You know her?" Kelria asked, surprised.

"Oh yeah. Remember, my family used to live at number 4 Windemere," Lily reminded them. "I suppose the Rosiers don't know that or they wouldn't live there now."

Khyana and Kelria exchanged a look. They had both completely forgotten about Lily living on Windemere, and Khyana suddenly felt sick.

"Well, we're all okay, right? And everything's going to be okay. I'm not dead, much to Sirius' disappointment, and we have at least a bit of a lead on our case. And now, if you don't mind, I'm going home to bed. Goodnight."

* * *

**A/N:**_ In response to my highly lovable but sadly incompetent best friend, no, that is not the point of a secret keeper. The point is so that the person they don't want to find them doesn't find them. Dumbledore is the secret keeper for the Order, but everyone in the Order knows where HQ is, ne? The Death Eaters and Ministry people don't know where it is though. Get it? But yes, the Potters were killed in Godric's Hollow. And I'm sorry about the long wait, I tried to get it up before I went away, but it just wasn't possible, and I just got back last night and I was dead tired, so I'm sorry, but here it is!_


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N**:_ Alright, people…this is the first chapter that is focusing entirely on Khyana. And it will be one of a very few (maybe 3 in the whole story, unless I'm really stuck), so enjoy it while it lasts! And this chapter is only because I have it all planned and am at a severe writer's block for the rest of the story. And so, in the midst of studying for exams next week, here is chapter 4!_

* * *

**Chapter 4: Problems, Solutions and Assignments**

Khyana was perplexed. And with good reason. Things were not turning out the way they were supposed to. This class…what had started as a simple alternative to Auror School was now consuming all her free time. And as much as she was enjoying it, she couldn't keep the course load for both that class and her Auror classes. She sighed. It wasn't going to be easy to drop the course, either…and she had paid for it already… "ARGH!" she cried. The cry resounded throughout her small house, and echoed back to her. She slammed her fist down on the table, which resulted only in a sore hand. "Come on, Yana, think!" she muttered.

And think she did. For days, all she did was think. It caused no end of grief for her friends and the members of her assignment group.

"KHYANA!"

Khyana snapped out of her reverie and took in her surroundings. She saw the faces of all her friends, and recognised the voice that had yelled at her as that of the team leader.

"Sorry, James, what?"

James glared at her. "Khyana," he said, with forced calm, "Do you have something you'd like to share with the class?"

Khyana considered it. "Actually yeah. I need to drop my course at the university, but I've already paid for it. What do you think I should do?"

The comment had the desired effect. Suggestions came from all over the table, and James lost complete control of the situation. He yelled loudly and stalked out of the library; Khyana smirked, and began to pay attention to the things people were telling her.

* * *

After the library incident, Khyana kept her musings to her own time, and started paying more attention to their assignment. James no longer asked her to share her thoughts aloud, something she was sometimes disappointed about, as she had the most interesting thoughts…and would have loved to have seen the looks on her friends' faces when the thoughts were put into words.

Despite this fact, the problem of her university course was still not solved. It was not as easy as her magic friends had assumed it would be.

"You could just Obliviate them all," Kelria suggested one day, as the two friends were having lunch at the ever popular Marty's Diner.

"Can't do that," Khyana replied, dragging a French Fry through her pile of ketchup over and over.

"Stop doing that, Khyana, it's disgusting," Kelria said finally, wrinkling her nose. "I'm sure you'll come up with something."

Khyana sighed and dropped her fry entirely in the ketchup. "I can't just Obliviate them all and have no one remember me. It would be like Obliviating you and Sirius and Alice and Lily and everyone else. Just because they're muggles doesn't mean we're not still friends."

"Okay, okay, sorry!" Kelria replied, raising her hands in surrender. "I'm sorry for suggesting it! I'm just trying to help."

Khyana sighed and dug her fry out of the ketchup, popping it in her mouth, and earning herself another disgusted look from Kelria.

"You are disgusting, Khyana, you know that?"

"Thanks."

"Why don't you ask your friends from your course what you should do?" Kelria suggested.

Khyana shook her head. "Not going to happen. They'll all want to know why I'm dropping, and I can't exactly tell them, can I? Oh, sorry, guys, I need to drop the course because it's getting to be too much work when mixed with my magic school courses." She raised an eyebrow and grabbed another fry.

Kelria pulled Khyana's plate away from her and motioned for the waitress to come and take it away.

"I don't know how much more of your eating habits I can handle, Khyana," she said when the waitress had disappeared. "Why don't you just drop the course and forget about the money? It's not like you're poor or anything."

Khyana cocked her head in agreement. "I know…I probably should."

"And it's not as if you need to pay for your Auror Schooling or anything like that."

"I _know_, Kelria! I just said I agree with you!"

Kelria held up her hands in surrender. "Okay, Yana, relax! If you don't want my help I won't give it."

Khyana sighed and put money down on the table. "We need to get back. Put down some money and let's go."

* * *

That night, Khyana approached her teacher at the university and explained that she needed to drop the course.

Her teacher looked dubious. "Are you sure, Khyana?" Professor Laurent asked. "You're doing very well."

Regarding the woman before her earnestly, Khyana nodded. "It's just getting to be too much," she explained.

Professor Laurent nodded. "Very well. Well, Khyana, it has been my pleasure to teach you these past few years, and I wish you well in your future endeavours."

"Thank you," Khyana replied, and gathering her things, she left the building.

She did not go far however, and her suspicions were rewarded. A few moments later a lone figure hurried out of the night class building. Spotting Khyana standing alone under a street lamp, the figure approached.

"Professor Laurent said you'd dropped the class."

"Yes," Khyana replied, nodding.

"Why?" Lezly Mayli asked, utterly confused.

"It's just getting to be too much work, Ly. I can't handle it anymore."

"But you're doing so well! Your French is improving so much…" Lezly attempted bravely to make her friend see reason.

"I know, and I'll try not to lose it. But French has never been my passion, Ly. I only took it as an alternative, you know that."

Lezly nodded again, her face still showing her confusion. "Yes, you've always been awfully vague about that, Yana."

Khyana shrugged. "I know, but I told you everything I could without putting you in danger. And besides, it's not like you don't know where I live. You can always stop by and see me. And we can make lunch plans and stuff, just like we've always done."

Lezly gave Khyana a stern look. "That's not the same and you know it."

"No, it's not, but it's the best I can do right now, Ly. Now I really need to get going, Kel is waiting for me."

Lezly sighed. "Alright. If you're sure this is really what you want."

Khyana nodded. "It is."

Lezly shrugged. "Then I guess this is it."

"Yep."

"I'll see you around?"

"Of course."

The two friends embraced, and then Khyana made her way downtown to Kelria's house, and Lezly went back into the night school building.

As Khyana walked to Kelria's house, she began thinking about everything that had happened to her over the past few years. Having been diagnosed late in her seventh year with Mora Menda, she had been told that she would never be able to be an auror. Thinking about this now, she smirked, remembering how she'd shown Professor Dumbledore and Madam McKenna and everyone else who'd told her it wasn't possible. At any rate, since she couldn't go to Auror School, she'd signed up for a French class at the muggle university, thinking if she could learn another language, she could at least get a different job at the Ministry.

Everyone had told her it was foolish; "French isn't an easy language to learn," Remus had warned. But she had disregarded it all and taken the course anyway. And, subsequently, she had taken the proffered French course at the school for the following three years. French was not, as Remus had said, an easy language to learn. But she had persevered, and her efforts had been rewarded. She had made some good friends over the course of her three years, and even if it wasn't the easiest language, French was certainly an interesting language, and she had enjoyed it immensely.

When she reached Kelria's house, she found everyone else already there.

"How'd it go?" Emily-Hope asked.

"Pretty good," Khyana replied. "The teacher was fine with it."

Kelria shot her friend an "I-told-you-so" look, to which Khyana made a rude gesture, and James shut them both down with a loud "ALRIGHT THEN! Let's get started."

The group had agreed to meet at Kelria's house for some serious work on their assignment.

"So, who has any information?"

For the next hour or so, different members of the groups talked about information they had discovered in regards to the different Death Eaters known to be participating in the ring they were trying to dismantle.

Finally James sighed tiredly and looked around at everyone.

"Okay, everyone. This has been really good. I'm going to assign everyone a Death Eater or Death Eater couple to investigate further, and we're going to see if we can't take this ring down member by member."

"James, there are more than nine Death Eaters in this ring," Lily pointed out.

James nodded. "I know. But we need to take down the key players first, and then we'll focus more on the lesser minions."

Khyana snorted. "So who are you assigning Voldemort then?"

James glared at her. "Enough cheek, Khyana. We're not assigned to take down Voldemort. I meant the key players in this ring. And just for that comment, you're getting assigned the Lestranges."

Khyana smirked. "Oh, my pleasure, James dear."

James looked a bit uncomfortable, and turned away from Khyana's creepy grin.

"Kelria, I want you on Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy."

Kelria nodded. "You might have to help me with this one, Yana."

Khyana shook her head. "Not a chance."

"Frank, I want you on Rookwood, okay?"

Frank nodded. "Sure, Cap."

"Emily-Hope, I want you to take down Rabastan Lestrange. You can go to Khyana if you need any help, or if you have any information about Bellatrix and Rodolphus. You two can share information."

Emily-Hope nodded. "Right-o."

"Lily, you're going to work with me, and we're going to take down the Rosiers."

Lily nodded, her mouth a thin line.

"That's smart," Khyana hissed quietly so only Kelria could hear. "Lily knows that neighbourhood like the back of her hand."

"Maybe James isn't such a blockhead after all," Kelria agreed, and the two broke down in silent giggles.

James ignored them, only deigning to cast them a contemptuous look before moving onto the last three members of the group.

"Kennedy, I want you on Regulus Black, since you seem to know the most about him."

Kennedy nodded his dark head solemnly and rose.

"In that case," he replied in his low bass voice, "I'll be off. Black is supposed to be doing something key for the Ring tonight."

James nodded his consent. "Great."

Kennedy left, grabbing his cloak quickly from the hall closet, and leaving silently through the front door.

"Kennedy's always creeped me out a bit," Kelria confessed under her breath to Khyana.

"Me too," Khyana agreed.

James cleared his throat, knowing better than to offer Khyana a penny for her thoughts. Both girls shot him innocent smiles, and he rolled his eyes, and turned to the last member of the team.

"Harvey, I know people say Nott is just a minion, but he's not stupid. Voldemort will know this, and use him for his own gain. I think Nott is a key player, and someone will need to bring down, and quickly. I want you on him."

Harvey nodded.

"And Aaron, I need you on the Travers girl…what's her name?"

"Miach," Khyana replied.

"That's right. Miach. I want you to watch her."

Aaron nodded. "I'll do my best."

"Great. Now that that's done, I think we're finished here, and I will see you all tomorrow bright and early." James said, and everyone stood to leave.

"Thanks for having us, Kelria," Emily-Hope said as everyone was getting their things.

"Not a problem," Kelria replied. "I'll see you all tomorrow."

Once everyone but Khyana was gone, the two friends sank down into chairs and heaved heavy sighs in unison.

"Well, that's that." Kelria said.

"What's what?" Khyana asked.

"The day's finally come," Kelria replied. "Of course, I always thought James would assign Lucius and Narcissa to you and Bellatrix and Rodolphus to me, but there you go."

Khyana glared at her. "I would _never_ have taken Lucius and Narcissa. Never. And James knows it. I'd probably hex him into next month if he tried to assign them to me."

Kelria nodded. "I suppose so. Still though. I wanted the Lestranges."

"I know you did. And I can't for the life of me understand why. You never knew Bellatrix!"

"But I've heard things," Kelria replied. "And none of them good."

"Well, that's because there simply isn't anything good to be said about Bellatrix," Khyana replied. "But I'm glad James assigned her to me. And I think I might be able to help you out a bit, too. I think Andi keeps tabs on her sisters and what they've been doing lately. We can stop by her place tomorrow or the next day and ask her about it."

"Sounds good," Kelria replied.

Khyana looked at the clock and jumped to her feet. "Merlin, is that the time? I need to get going, I have to write an essay for Professor North."

"Another?" Kelria asked.

Khyana nodded. "Yeah. He wasn't happy with my first, so I have to rewrite it."

Kelria shook her head in disbelief. "That man is insane."

"Yep," Khyana agreed, grabbing her cloak. "See you tomorrow."

"See you."

* * *

**A/N2:**_ There you go. And don't expect another until exams are over! Which is next Wednesday...well, that's when I'll start the next one prolly. So yeah. And I realise that Lezly had an extra "e" in the previous chappie, but I like it better the way it is. So ha. That's all._


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: Information**

The next day, which was Wednesday, everyone on Kelria's squad was busy pursuing his or her respective assigned Death Eaters. Khyana and Kelria made their way to the Tonks home with optimistic outlooks.

"Are you sure Andi won't mind?" Kelria asked for the fifth time.

Khyana's patience was wearing thin. "_Yes_, Kelria, for the last time! She's not going to mind!"

"Alright, if you're sure."

"I'm sure."

When they reached the tiny house, they knocked loudly and were greeted by a little girl, about five, with blonde pigtails, who regarded them thoughtfully.

"Who are you?" she asked bluntly.

Khyana smothered a smile. "My name is Khyana. What's yours?"

"Nymphadora," she replied with a grimace.

Khyana looked surprised. "Really?"

"Yes. I don't like it, though."

Khyana smiled. "Is your mom at home?"

Nymphadora shook her head and her pigtails bounced. "Daddy's here."

"May I speak to him, please?"

Ted Tonks appeared in the hall at that moment, and when he saw who his visitors were, a large grin spread across his face.

"Khyana! You're a redhead!"

"Hello, Tonks," she replied with a grin. "Yes, that I am. And how are you?"

"Good, good. Dora here certainly keeps us on our toes."

Khyana laughed. "She seems the type to do so, yes. We actually stopped by to see Andi. When do you expect her home?"

"Any minute. Please come in."

The two auror students stepped into the small house and looked around.

"It's not much," Ted said, "And it's certainly not what Andi's used to, but she didn't want a big house."

Khyana nodded. "I can understand that. I prefer smaller homes as well."

Ted nodded. "Won't you sit?" he asked, indicating the chesterfield.

The two women sat down on the sofa, and Ted sent Dora out to play in the yard.

"But I want to stay here."

"_Now_, Nymphadora," Ted said sternly.

Dora left, glaring and muttering darkly, and Khyana smiled.

"Well, well, she's a Black after all," she muttered quietly.

"What?" Ted asked.

Khyana shook her head. "Nothing."

There was a _whoosh_ from the fireplace, and Andromeda Black Tonks spun into view, carrying an armload of packages. Ted jumped up and grabbed the parcels before they could fall.

"Welcome home," he said, grinning broadly.

"Thanks," Andi said, also grinning, and then noticed her guests. "Khyana!" she cried, laughing. "Well, this is certainly a surprise, though not unwelcome. You're a redhead!"

"Yes, that I am," Khyana agreed with a grin, the same way she had done with Ted.

The two women talked for a few more moments, and Kelria felt awkward, like she was interrupting a reunion.

"Wow, I'm stupid," Khyana said suddenly. "I'm sorry, Andi, this is my best friend, Kelria Song."

Andi nodded, still grinning. "I assumed so. It's nice to finally meet you, I've heard so much about you."

Kelria flushed slightly, and shook Andi's hand. "I've heard a lot about you, too."

Andi's face suddenly lost its grin. "I know you too well, Khyana Malfoy. This isn't a social call, is it? Not in the middle of a work day, in the middle of one of the biggest assignments of your school career."

Khyana shook her head, her face becoming suddenly serious as well.

"No, Andi, it's not. We need to ask you a couple questions."

Andi sighed. "I should have expected this. You want to know about Bella and Cissy, don't you?"

Khyana nodded.

Andi looked to her husband, who took her hand in his and squeezed it lightly. Then she took a deep breath.

"Who's got Bella?"

"I do," Khyana replied.

If Andi was surprised, she didn't show it. She merely nodded and looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Well, I'm sure you both know that she's married Rodolphus Lestrange…"

"I've been assigned both of them," Khyana replied.

"Oh really…" Andi said, raising her eyebrows. "Interesting…well, alright then. Bella's been meeting with some people…I don't know who they are. It's a couple, a young man and a young woman, about your age I'd think. She's got brown hair, and his is a dirty blonde, but I think he dyes it. I think she's trying to recruit them, and every time they meet, the guy gives her a package of some sort. I don't know what's in it."

Khyana looked thoughtful, and was silent for a few moments before finally saying, "Thanks, Andi, that's really a big help."

"No problem," Andi replied, nodding her head in Khyana's direction before her attention to Kelria. "And you've been assigned the Malfoys."

"Yes," Kelria agreed.

"Well then," Andi said, and then looked thoughtful for a few moments. "Alright. I wouldn't worry too much about Cissy. She's too busy being a mommy, but Lucius-"

"Hang on!" Khyana cried. "_What_ did you just say about Narcissa?"

Andi looked confused. "She's busy being a mommy…?"

"Since when do Lucius and Narcissa have a kid?" Khyana asked, trying hard not to puke.

"Um…March, I think," Andi replied.

"_WHAT_?! This is June!" she cried, then whirled on Kelria. "Did _you_ know the Malfoys had a kid?"

Kelria shook her head, as shocked by the news as Khyana was. "I haven't heard anything about it."

Khyana looked completely lost. "I'm an aunt…grand! The last thing we need is Lucius reproducing…oh yuck. I'm trying very hard not to be sick right now."

Andi looked confused. "You didn't know Narcissa had a son?"

"A son? Joyous occasion. Why couldn't it have been a girl?" Khyana demanded. "A girl would have been better…"

Andi shook her head. "Then we'd have a mini Bella running around, trust me. And if it had been a girl, they would have had more. Lucius is only interested in an heir. Now that he's got it, there's no need to have any more children."

"I guess," Khyana agreed. "So tell me about my nephew…_our_ nephew," she corrected herself.

Andi shrugged. "There's not really much to tell. His name is Draco, and he looks like Lucius. And he screams a lot."

Khyana smirked. "Lucius screamed a lot too. Mother was forever reminding him."

Andi nodded. "So, anyway. Lucius is making some sort of plan…he's been meeting with strange people too, but not the same ones as Bella and Rodolphus. He's meeting with just a man; he looks kind of like a rat, actually. What Lucius sees in him, I'll never know. He doesn't seem to be much help…except that they talk a lot, and I think the man works in the Ministry, or has friends in the Ministry; specifically in the auror department. From what I gather, he has friends working a big assignment involving Lucius…which would be you ladies."

Khyana, naturally pale as a Malfoy, looked nearly transparent, and Kelria also looked scared. Someone close to them was leaking information…?

"Thank you, Andi," Khyana managed to get out. "You've been a great help. We should probably get going, tell James what we've found and such."

Andi nodded, and the four stood. "You should come back sometime--both of you--and we'll catch up, Yana. And I'd love to get to know you better, Kelria."

Khyana nodded, too shaken to say anything more. The two women collected their things at the door and headed out into the afternoon sun, neither able to say a word.

* * *

James was absolutely furious.

"You're sure?" he demanded, for the seventh time.

Khyana nodded, too stunned still to reprimand him for yelling at her. "Definitely," she replied, same as she had six times already. "Andi wouldn't lie about this."

"Yeah, that's another thing," James continued, still fuming. "How does she know all this?"

Khyana shrugged. "She keeps good tabs on her sisters and their husbands. That's all I can say for sure."

James shook his head and pounded his hand on his desk again. "I just can't believe it. I'm calling a meeting. My office, now. Anyone not there is immediately put on probation under suspicion of leaking information. Got it?"

Kelria nodded, but Khyana looked sceptical. "That's absurd, James. People are busy doing other things, they're working on their parts of the assignment."

"Now," James repeated, in the same no-nonsense voice Ted had used on Nymphadora, and left Khyana's cubicle.

Khyana sighed. "I'm telling you, stubborn as a mule that one."

"I heard that, Khyana!"

* * *

Five minutes later, the entire team was in James' cubicle…and it was _not_ a comfortable fit, nine people in that tiny cubicle. Kelria held her tongue, however, knowing that James was not in a good mood.

"Alright, people," James began. "I'm sure you're all wondering why you're here."

"No kidding," Frank agreed. James shot him a glare.

"No more comments from the peanut gallery, please," he said sternly.

Frank gave him a lopsided smile, but said no more.

"Alright. So. You've all been called here for a very important reason," James began again. "I've just been given some information that there is a leak in our information system. Someone's been feeding information to the Death Eaters about what we're doing. Does that sound about right, Khyana and Kelria?"

Khyana nodded. "Something like that," she agreed.

"Andi said that it wasn't someone in our group; this person had friends in our group," Kelria took up the story. "And apparently he looks like a rat…?" she finished with a confused shrug. "Who has a friend that looks like a rat?"

They all thought for a moment, and then James and Khyana paled at the same moment.

"No way," Khyana breathed, catching James' eye.

"There's no way…he wouldn't," James said softly.

* * *

**A/N:**_ Well there you go. I've had two exams so far...two to go...I had nothing to do all afternoon...my dad's home all day, so I worked on this in my room. And now it's done. And now I'm off to put up chappie 6!_


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6: Rob Marsden**

"When was the last time you saw him?" Khyana asked, and James shrugged.

"I haven't seen him in a long time actually…"

"What about the others? Sirius? Remus? Has anyone seen him?"

James shrugged again. "I don't know. You'll have to ask them."

Kelria was a little confused. "Whom are we talking about here?" she asked, raising her hand slightly.

Khyana shook her head. "No one. Doesn't matter. Hey!" she added, glaring around at everyone in the cubicle. "Did anyone here know that the Malfoys have a kid?"

Everyone began talking at once, and James called for silence.

"What do you mean, Khyana?" he asked.

Khyana rolled her eyes at him. "You know, a baby? Like the one Lily's going to have in a month? The Malfoys have one. Since March. Which means she'd been pregnant since last June. That's a year ago, people!"

James shook his head in disbelief. "They have a kid?"

Kelria nodded. "Yep. A son. Draco. What a name, eh?"

Khyana shrugged. "It's better than one he could have been given. I bet _his_ son gets Abraxas again."

"Okay, so the Malfoys have a kid," James repeated. "That doesn't affect our investigation."

"It might," Harvey spoke up. "If Narcissa's been pregnant, it'll affect what she can or can't do for the Ring. Lucius wouldn't have wanted to risk hurting his heir. He would have limited her actions majorly."

Frank nodded. "Harvey's right. I don't think she's been majorly involved lately. And I don't think she will be in the near future."

"Maybe not lately," Emily-Hope agreed, "But this investigation has been going on for years! She probably had a major part a few years ago."

"That's true," Aaron agreed. "You know who we really need to talk to about this whole thing?"

"Rob Marsden," Khyana replied, nodding.

"Who's Rob Marsden?" Kelria asked, confused.

"He's the auror who worked this case before us," James explained. "He disappeared about a year ago."

"So how are we going to talk to him?"

Khyana sighed. "We're not. We were just saying that it would be convenient to talk to him."

"Oh." Kelria replied, still a little lost. "What do you mean, he disappeared?"

Frank took up the story. "He worked this case for six years. It was his baby, his first assignment straight out of Auror School. We know he got really close to some crucial information, and then all of a sudden he was gone. Dropped off the map. No one knows what happened to him. Some say the Death Eaters got him, but I have my doubts. If they had him, they'd let us know. I think he got scared."

"No way!" Emily-Hope cried.

"Not a chance," Aaron agreed.

"Not likely," Kennedy agreed softly.

"I have my doubts about both theories," Lily replied.

"Alright then," Frank bristled, getting defensive. "Let's hear your theories!"

"Stop, all of you!" James cried. "I, too, have my doubts about Rob Marsden getting scared. If it had been anyone else, I'd agree, but not Rob. I think he realised that he could do better work if he wasn't officially on the case. I just wish we could contact him."

Khyana nodded. "I agree with that."

Kelria raised her hand. "I'm still confused. How do you all know this guy?"

Khyana turned to face her friend. "Rob was six years older than us. Everyone knew him; he was the most popular kid in school. We were only first years when he graduated, but even Slytherins looked up to him, and that said something. After he'd graduated, he kept contact with a lot of people at the school. He'd started going out with Marlene McKinnon when she was in her fourth year, when he was in his seventh. A little odd, I know, but they liked each other a lot. Marlene was only three years older than we were, so we sort of got to know her better than we did Rob, but through her we got to know Rob. I doubt that he disappeared because he was afraid. It just doesn't seem like him. I know Marlene was devastated when he disappeared. They were engaged, you know. It just didn't make sense that he'd disappear without telling her unless the Death Eaters got him, which is why so many people think he's dead. But if he needed to work anonymously, then it makes sense that he wouldn't tell her, since she's an auror too."

The others in the cubicle nodded.

James stood from his chair. "Okay. So we need to work on finding Rob Marsden, but in the meantime we need to continue with this assignment. This case is now completely confidential. You are not allowed to tell anyone about what you do, not even wives," he added, giving Aaron, Frank and Harvey pointed looks. They nodded. "And Kel and Yana, no telling Remus or Sirius, either, got it?"

Both girls nodded, and everyone left the cramped cubicle.

Kelria followed Khyana back to her cubicle, a million questions running through her head.

"Who were you and James talking about?" she asked.

Khyana sighed. "Think, Kelria. Who do we know who looks like a rat?"

Kelria shook her head, a confused look still on her face.

Khyana gave another sigh, this one exasperated. "Come on Kel! You can't have been in this circle of friends for four years and not know this! The Rat, Kel!"

A look of comprehension dawned on Kelria's face. "You don't think?" she asked.

Khyana shrugged and sat down at the desk. "It's the only thing I can think of."

Kelria shook her head. "There's no way. I don't believe it. He might not fit in very well with us, but I don't think he'd go over to the Dark Side, either."

Khyana shot her a look. "Well, you can think what you want, Kel, and I'll think what I want."

Kelria put her hands on her hips. "You just want him to be guilty because you don't like him!"

Khyana shrugged again. "May be."

Kelria turned and left the cubicle in a huff, calling back over her shoulder, "That Malfoy pride of yours is going to get you killed someday, Khyana."

* * *

When she arrived home that evening, Khyana was furious. How dare she? How _dare_ Kelria make a comment like that? Malfoy pride. As if.

Sirius was waiting for her in the kitchen, his feet on the table, a bottle of firewhiskey in his hand.

"Get your feet off my table, Sirius Black," Khyana snapped angrily.

Sirius removed his feet languidly, and looked at her curiously.

"Tough day at the office?" he asked teasingly.

"So not in the mood, Black," she answered, throwing her bag at him.

He caught it deftly, and the teasing look left his face. "What happened?"

Khyana shook her head. "I don't want to talk about it."

He raised his eyebrows sceptically. "That means you really want to talk about it," he replied.

Khyana shook her head. Why did he have to know her so well? She decided to change the subject.

"I saw your cousin today," she said, pulling out some pans for dinner.

"My cousin?" Sirius asked, confused.

Khyana nodded. "Andromeda?"

"Oh! Oh, _that_ cousin. What'd she have to say?"

Khyana shrugged. "I went to see her about Bella and Narcissa."

"And?"

"Well, I'm an aunt," Khyana replied lightly.

"_What_?"

"Yup. Narcissa and Lucius have a kid. A son. Draco."

Sirius stared at her, shocked. "For how long?"

"Since March," Khyana replied lightly.

"And this doesn't bother you?"

"Of course it bothers me! Lucius has a _kid_! EW!"

Sirius grinned. This was more his Khyana.

"Question."

"Answer."

Khyana rolled her eyes and Sirius laughed.

"What's your question?"

"You are in my house why?"

Sirius shrugged. "I don't like my house."

Khyana rolled her eyes again. "Then get a new one!"

Sirius shook his head. "Nah. Don't need a new one."

"Well then stay out of mine!" she cried, turning back to the counter.

Sirius came over and put his arms around her waist, putting his mouth near her ear. "But see, darling, I don't need a new house because whenever I get bored of mine, I can come to yours. So if I can't come to yours, where will I go?"

Khyana stopped chopping peppers long enough to say, "You have three best friends, who all have houses. Go bother one of them."

Sirius threw back his head and laughed. "You're funny, Na, you know that?"

"I've been told that," Khyana replied darkly.

Sirius kissed the back of her neck. "Well, it's true," he murmured.

* * *

**A/N:**_ It wasn't all about Yana. Just a little bit. I had to put it in. Kelria's back in full swing in the next one, though. These past few have focussed on everyone. So there you go. And don't be surprised if chapter 7 is up pretty soon too...And now I'm off to work! I hate work..._


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7: Preparation**

"Alright, people, listen up!"

The room quieted immediately, and all attention was focussed on Professor Austeros, the Headmistress of the Auror School.

"As you will all remember, your final exams are coming up in a week," (there were groans from around the room as people did, indeed, remember), "And while I realise you are all busy with your assignments from the Ministry, this is no excuse for doing poorly on your exams. You are expected to pass, or you will be removed from your Ministry assignments. We have had few or no problems with people in the past, and I do not expect you to be any problem at all. Anyone having difficulties should see their professors sooner rather than later, to ensure success."

There was a scraping of chairs as the small graduating class stood, stretched and left for the day.

Though Khyana would never say anything, Kelria could tell she was nervous about her Disguises exam. She had never been much good at potions at Hogwarts, and her hair was a constant reminder that she hadn't done much better since being at Auror School. Despite the fact that her illness was responsible for her hair, Khyana took it personally, knowing that she was a failure when it came to potions.

Despite the fact that Professor Austeros was a member of the Order, she would have no nonsense from her students. In fact, she expected much more from her fellow Order members. Knowing this, they all hurried out of the lecture hall before she could catch them, apparating almost as soon as they'd left the room.

* * *

Kelria collapsed on her couch, exhausted. She hadn't seen her boyfriend in nearly a week--he was doing work for the Order--and she was starting to really miss him. She needed a break from all the work James and her professors were piling on her. It had been two weeks since the aurors had been assigned specific Death Eaters, and she was no closer to convicting the Malfoys than she'd been the day she yelled at Khyana about her Malfoy pride. Of course, after a comment like that, Khyana was still not speaking to her.

She closed her eyes and groaned. Though Andi had been most helpful in the past few weeks, Kelria still had yet to catch Malfoy in one of the strange meetings she had mentioned.

She had an Order meeting in an hour, but in the meantime she intended to relax and do nothing. She grabbed a pizza out of the freezer and put it in the oven, which she set to turn off when the pizza was done--one of the many conveniences of a magical oven.

Then she ran upstairs and ran water for a bath. She decided that she deserved at least that much, with all the running around she'd done lately.

She knew that tonight she would probably be given an assignment, since she had skimped out on the last five, and she knew that that meant more work for her, on top of her auror work.

And in two weeks, the graduation ceremony for the Auror School graduates, of which she was hopefully one, would be held. Which meant she had exams next week.

She sank into the bath water and sighed, then groaned. Exams, Order assignments, and Auror assignments, all at the same time.

"Well," she said aloud, "c'est la vie, as Yana would say."

And indeed, Khyana said that almost daily now. What with all the complaining people were doing about how much work they had, and her irritation with Kelria, and all the work she had to do herself…she'd been given an Order assignment last week. Dumbledore was not lenient with his auror students. In fact, like Professor Austeros, he expected much more from them.

Kelria enjoyed her bath for half an hour, then got out, dressed and ate her pizza.

By the time she was done, she knew she was going to be late. Dumbledore was not impressed when people were late, and she knew she had no excuse, except that she spent too much time in the bath…which she didn't think Dumbledore would accept.

She spun on the spot, appearing seconds later in the Order of the Phoenix headquarters, just in time to hear Dumbledore ask, "Where is Kelria?"

"I'm here," she replied, smiling.

He nodded. "Okay. Now that everyone's here, we have some things to discuss."

Looking around at her fellow Order members, Kelria was struck by how many people were missing this week. Gideon and Fabian Prewett were off doing something-or-other, Remus was away, James was missing, Hagrid was conspicuous only by his absence, and Moody was also missing. Professors Austeros, North and McGonagall were missing as well, likely getting exams ready, and Edgar Bones was working late. Dedalus Diggle was also missing. Of course, not everyone showed up at every single meeting, but to have eleven people missing at one meeting…that was most odd.

She took careful note of who _was_ there as well, as she always did. She looked at Marlene McKinnon beside her with a new sense of respect, knowing now about Rob Marsden and how he had left…Emmeline Vance looked ill, and Kelria wondered if maybe there was a flu bug going around. Khyana and Sirius were sitting together, as were Alice and Frank. Lily was sitting beside Alice, and beside Lily was Hestia Jones, a young woman who worked for the Ministry, doing what, Kelria didn't know. Sturgis Podmore was sitting between Hestia and Benjy Fenwick, who, as always, looked as if he were about to be convicted of a terrible crime. Peter Pettigrew, who continued to come to meetings despite the suspicion of Khyana, looked nervous and afraid, and Kelria couldn't help wondering why. Khyana had not even spoken to him yet, as far as Kelria knew, and that was the only reason she could think of for Peter to look the way he did…unless he really _was_ meeting with Malfoy, in which case, anyone would look scared.

Dumbledore was saying something.

"-I want you all to make him feel welcome."

"What's going on?" Kelria hissed to Marlene beside her.

"Dumbledore's found a new member for the Order," Marlene replied very quietly. "He's here tonight, and Dumbledore wants us to make him feel welcome."

"Oh," Kelria replied, nodding. "I got it."

"Alright then, Professor," Hestia said, smiling.

"I'm glad you approve, Hestia," he replied, with a pointed look at Sirius, who looked confused.

Kelria was also a little lost. Hestia had spoken, not Sirius. So why was Dumbledore looking at Sirius like that?

Dumbledore swept his arm behind him with a flourish, something like a ringleader introducing his top act, and a man appeared behind him with a slight _pop_.

Sirius made a cry of anger and stood from his seat. "Bloody hell, Dumbledore, you're not serious!"

"No, that would be you," Dumbledore replied lightly, as Khyana stood and grabbed Sirius' arm. "Sit down please, Mr. Black."

Sirius sat, his face red with fury, and the man behind Dumbledore smirked.

"For those of you who do not know," Dumbledore began, "This is Severus Snape."

"Oh, I think everyone knows who he is," Khyana said, her voice filled with contempt.

"Watch your tone, Malfoy," Snape sneered.

Khyana was on her feet with her wand out faster than Kelria could blink, and before anyone could say anything, hexes were flying.

"ENOUGH!" Dumbledore roared, and a series of sparks came out the end of his own wand. He looked ready to murder Khyana. "I will not have this! You are on the same side, whether you like it or not. You _will_ get along, do you hear me?"

Khyana looked incredulous. "You can't trust him, Professor! He's a Death Eater!"

Dumbledore glared at her. "He _was_ a Death Eater, Miss Malfoy. He has agreed to turn spy for me, at great personal risk. The matter is not up for discussion."

* * *

"I don't believe this!" Sirius cried furiously.

Kelria, Khyana, Sirius, Alice, Frank, Peter and Lily were sitting in the Three Broomsticks. The Order meeting had finished about ten minutes previously, and the friends had immediately escaped to their customary "after meeting" spot: Madam Rosmerta's cozy pub.

Khyana seemed to have forgotten that she was angry with Kelria, in her fury with Dumbledore.

"I can't believe him!" Khyana agreed, just as furious as her boyfriend.

"Hey, guys, sorry I'm late," James hurried over to the table, kissed Lily on the cheek, and sat in the empty chair beside her. Then he noticed their faces. "Hey, I'm just a little late. That's no reason to murder me, Sirius."

"It's not you I want to murder," Sirius replied through clenched teeth.

James looked totally lost, and Lily explained, "Dumbledore brought a new member to the meeting tonight."

"O…kay?" James said, still confused. "How is that bad?"

"The new member is Severus Snape," Kelria replied.

"WHAT?!"

"Yeah," Khyana muttered. "Tell me about it."

"I don't believe it!" James cried, running his hand through his hair. "What is he thinking?"

"Apparently, Snape's changed," Khyana replied, wrapping her hands around her bottle of firewhiskey. Everyone had shot her an odd look when she'd ordered it, but she claimed her nerves were so shot from that meeting, she wouldn't even notice it in her system. In contrast, Sirius had ordered a Butterbeer, claiming he didn't think his system could handle a firewhiskey.

"Not a chance," James said surely. "Once a Death Eater, always a Death Eater."

"Maybe he has changed," Peter said quietly, his face hopeful.

He was immediately shut down, as everyone at the table, even Alice and Lily, starting crying that there was no way, especially with Snape. Peter slumped down in his seat and said nothing more.

"I just can't believe Dumbledore actually thinks Snape's really changed," James said.

"Or that he actually expects us to work with him and get along," Khyana added. "I had to put up with him for seven years. It's not going to happen again quickly without a fight."

"The rest of us had to put up with him too, Na," Sirius replied.

"Not like I had to. He wasn't in your house."

"Thankfully."

"So you lot don't know what it's like. I will _not_ put up with him again! Merlin and Salazar!" she cried angrily.

Sirius covered her hand on the table with his own, and everyone else gave her sympathetic looks.

Kelria smothered a smile at Khyana's choice of words. Merlin and Salazar hardly seemed to go together…and indeed, she almost felt bad for old Merlin, having his name associated like that with Salazar Slytherin…but she knew Khyana's family days had been spent using Salazar, not Merlin, as the curse, and she had only been using Merlin for ten years.

When the friends parted later that night, Kelria knew she wouldn't be sleeping much that night. Dumbledore let Snape into the Order…it wasn't just a bad dream. He must be out of his mind…

* * *

**A/N:**_ There you are, ladies and gents! I haven't had any reviews lately..._:(_. So if I don't get some soon, I'll stop writing. I know, exams are on right now and stuff, so I'll cut you some slack...but you better start reviewing after next week! _


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8: Tracking**

The next week was very hectic for the Auror students, and especially for Kelria, who had indeed been assigned a project at the meeting where Dumbledore had introduced Snape. She found herself getting less and less sleep as her days were devoted to her auror and Order assignments, leaving only the evenings and nights for studying. And she knew the auror exams were rigorous, having taken them the past two years as well. Which meant she really needed to study.

"Exams start on Monday," she muttered to herself Saturday morning. "And I'm not doing any more work on any assignments until they're done."

She pulled her notes from Stealth and Stalking toward her, but was interrupted before a half hour had passed by a loud knocking on the front door.

She grumbled and cursed the person the whole way to the door, but opened it nonetheless.

"Yes?"

Andromeda Tonks was standing on the front stoop, looking most uncomfortable.

"I'm sorry to bother you at home, Kelria, but I have some information that you might find useful, and I didn't trust it to a letter."

Putting aside her frustration, Kelria plastered on a smile and invited the woman inside.

Andi entered the house, and Kelria led her to the living room.

"Sorry about the mess," she said somewhat sheepishly. "I'm studying for my exams."

"Of course, I understand," Andi replied, sitting on the couch.

"Now, what is this important information?" Kelria asked, eager to get the meeting over with and get back to her studying.

Andi looked around furtively, as if watching for spies. Kelria gave an exasperated sigh at the drama and flicked her wrist, creating a soundproof barrier around her home. Andi looked relieved.

"I've got information about Malfoy," she said quietly, despite the barrier.

"How reliable is your source?" Kelria asked immediately. She wasn't exactly sure what good the question ever did, but she had heard Moody and Dumbledore both use it, and thought it sounded cool.

Andi's eyebrows shot up. "Very reliable," she replied. "I've been using him for information for years, and he's never yet led me astray."

"Okay," Kelria answered, nodding. "Continue."

Andi nodded. "Malfoy's boys are on the move. He's been employing three young Hogwarts graduates for several months now, but they haven't been doing anything other than buy him drinks and other supplies at local pubs and grocers. Now they've moved onto bigger things. We're not sure what, but I thought you should know."

Kelria groaned. This was the _last_ thing she needed, with exams and her Order work…more work. Great.

"Thank you, Andi," Kelria sighed. "Do you have any idea who the boys are?"

Andi nodded. "The Wilkes boy seems to be the ringleader, and he other two follow him around. Avery and Travers, I think."

Kelria's head was spinning. Donavan Wilkes was only 16, he should still have been at Hogwarts. What was he doing?

"You're sure they're Hogwarts graduates?"

Andi nodded. "Why?"

"Well, Donavan Wilkes is only 16."

Andi looked confused. "Are you sure?"

Kelria nodded. "Very sure. He was 5 years younger than Sara."

"Hmm." Andi looked thoughtful. "Well, I'll talk to my informant, and see what I can do about it."

"And I'll talk to Dumbledore. He'd know."

Andi nodded and stood to leave. "Well, I'm sorry to have intruded. I will leave you to your studying."

Kelria smiled thankfully and saw her guest to the door, before sinking back onto the settee with a scream of frustration. She pulled her Stealth and Stalking notes towards her, but knew that it was hopeless now. Andi's news had intrigued her, and she knew there was nothing for it now but to find Professor Dumbledore and ask him what was going on with Donavan Wilkes.

She grabbed her cloak and hurried out the door, cursing her inquisitiveness to the ground.

* * *

She found Dumbledore exactly where she expected to find him: in his office on the seventh floor of Hogwarts. The Hogwarts grounds were exactly as she remembered them, and as she strode across the lawns, she was reminded strongly of herself in her seventh year, studying under the big tree by the lake with Khyana, Lily, Alice and Remus. When she reached the seventh floor, she gave the password, which everyone in the Order had been given at the beginning of the year, and the gargoyle jumped aside, allowing her access to the spiral staircase, which she climbed two at a time, knocking loudly on the door at the top.

"Come in."

The door opened easily, and Kelria entered the office, a wide grin on her face.

"Morning, Professor."

Dumbledore looked up, surprised. "Good morning, Kelria. What can I do for you?"

"I had a visit earlier today from Andromeda Tonks, Professor," Kelria replied. "She had some information for me, and I was hoping you could help clear up some confusion."

"Well, I'll certainly do my best," Dumbledore replied with a small smile, putting down his quill, steepling his fingers and regarding her over the top of his half-moon spectacles.

"Donavan Wilkes. Is he still here at school?"

Professor Dumbledore nodded. "He certainly is. Why do you ask?"

Kelria looked perplexed. "Because Andi says he's working for Lucius Malfoy."

"Is he indeed?" Dumbledore asked, looking bemused. "Well, that would certainly explain a lot."

Kelria shot him a confused look. "Pardon me?"

"Donavan has been missing classes lately, and seems to have no explanation, even for Professor Slughorn. No amount of punishment seems to do him any good, I'm afraid, and he keeps missing classes. And Avery and Travers have been joining him."

Kelria nodded. "That's what Andi was saying. So they've been missing classes…that could explain some things. I was wondering how they managed to do things for him. But Andi swore that they were graduates."

Dumbledore shook his head. "They're sixth years, eager to get in on the war. Donavan even more so, to prove to the Death Eaters that his older sister's traitorous ways were not passed on to him and his younger sister. I'm surprised that all he's doing is running silly errands for Lucius Malfoy."

"I guess he has to start somewhere, though," Kelria added.

"Yes, I suppose he does. You were assigned the Malfoys for your auror assignment?"

Kelria nodded. Dumbledore looked pleased.

"I always knew James Potter was a born leader. He is wise."

Kelria nodded. "He is that. We're lucky to have him as our leader."

Dumbledore nodded. "So you like him then?"

Kelria looked taken aback. "Well, yeah, I like him alright. He's married to one of my best friends…"

Dumbledore chuckled. "You like him as a leader?"

"Oh, yes," Kelria agreed. "He's a very capable leader."

"Good," Dumbledore said, nodding once. "That's just what I thought."

Kelria was to get no more insight into Professor Dumbledore's mind at that time, because at just that moment, Professor McGonagall burst into the office.

"Albus," she panted, "Wilkes is going out again."

Kelria was out of her seat like a bullet. She raced past Professor McGonagall, down the spiral staircase, down all seven floors and out onto the grounds before Wilkes' back was out of the front gate. She had never run so fast in her life.

Since Wilkes was underage, he could not apparate, so Kelria had no worries about losing him before she caught him. She wanted to see whom he talked to, where he went, and if he made any further plans.

She was surprised to see that he was alone, expecting him to have Avery or Travers trailing after him. He headed for the Hog's Head; stopping at the door to see if he was being followed, he went inside, followed closely by Kelria, wishing fervently that she had an Invisibility Cloak.

Once inside, Kelria realised why she had never been in before. It was a stuffy pub, with none of the warm coziness of Madam Rosmerta's Three Broomsticks. She had no trouble keeping her eye on Wilkes, who sat down at a table in a back corner of the pub. She sat at a table near the door, where it was easier for her to make her escape if things got dangerous.

After about fifteen minutes, just as she was starting to remember that she had exams starting Monday, Kelria's patience was rewarded. A tall man entered the pub and approached Wilkes' table. Kelria instinctively lowered her head as he passed, pretending to be engrossed in fixing something on her cloak. The barman was eyeing her suspiciously, and she hoped the meeting with Wilkes wouldn't take Malfoy long; she didn't want to have to buy anything.

She growled in her throat as she realised she was too far away to hear anything that was being said, but she couldn't risk getting any closer. Not without an Invisibility Cloak. The man was obviously Malfoy, though. Everything from the way he held his head to the wisps of hair visible under his hood told his identity, no matter how hard he tried to hide it.

After about ten minutes, Malfoy stood and left the pub. Kelria watched him out the door, saw him turn right, then waited five minutes before following him, hoping fervently all the while that that was the only half hour she'd ever have to spend in the Hog's Head Inn.

* * *

**A/N:**_ ONE MORE EXAM!! You have no idea how happy that makes me! Yes, Kel, shut up. (Kel's done her exams, because she did the ISU for Anthro instead of the exam). But I'm so ready! Even thought I TOTALLY FAILED my math exam today, I'll do better tomorrow. (BTW: WHO CALLED IT?!? I did!) Anyway, yeah so chapter 8's done, and I'll shut up now._


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9: Dinner at Marty's**

By the time Kelria left the Hog's Head, Lucius was far up the High Street. She headed his way, following him all the way through Hogsmeade to the edge of town. When he reached the edge, he looked behind him, and then spun on the spot and disapparated. Smirking, Kelria did the same, glad Professor Dragh had taught them how to follow people who apparated in her Stealth and Stalking class.

The place where Kelria ended up was a field in the middle of nowhere, and Kelria was more than a bit perplexed. What in Merlin's name did Malfoy want with an empty field?

Then it hit her. He must have known he was being followed, and had put a change in the spell, to make her go in a different direction from him. And looking around, she couldn't see him anywhere. She cursed loudly, then spun on the spot and apparated back to her cozy living room, where all her study notes were still spread out on the coffee table.

She sighed and sat down for a good three hours of study before she got too hungry to continue, at which point she called Khyana to see if the younger girl fancied a trip to Marty's.

"This late?" Khyana asked, looking at the clock over her mantle, grinning widely the whole time. She herself had had a telephone installed to keep up correspondence with her friends from the University, and Kelria had followed suit ("It makes sense, since you and Lily both have one, and they're really very convenient"). Every time Kelria used the device, Khyana teased her to high heaven.

"Sure, why not?"

"Alright. Five minutes, usual table."

"Sounds good."

Kelria hung up the phone and hurried to put on some of the muggle clothes she and Khyana had bought together when she'd started at the university, the same day they'd discovered Marty's Diner.

Five minutes later, the two friends were sitting in their usual spot at the restaurant, talking jokingly with Jonathan, the cute waiter, and Julie, his sister.

"It's been a while since you two've been around," Julie said.

"Work's been really busy," Khyana said, before Kelria had a chance to say anything. "We just couldn't get away. And we have exams this week. We needed a break from all the studying."

Kelria felt a slight pang at Khyana's words. She knew she really shouldn't be here at all, but should be back home studying, since she hadn't done much earlier in the day, tracking Malfoy and such. She made a firm decision to study harder the next day.

Khyana was still talking with Julie, who was getting rude remarks and gestures from other customers who wanted her attentions to take care of their bills or food.

"Oi! Julie!"

Julie sighed as her boss called to her, gave the two friends an exasperated look, then hurried off to look after her other customers, her hand in her apron pocket.

Jonathan had also disappeared with their orders, and Kelria thought it a good time to bring up the topic of her tracking session with Khyana's brother.

"Andi stopped by my house today," she said nonchalantly.

"Really?" Khyana asked, dipping an onion ring in the sauce. "What'd she have to say?"

"She had some information for me about Malfoy."

Khyana stiffened at the mention of her brother. "Did she now?" she asked indifferently.

"Yeah. Apparently your brother-"

"He is _not_ my brother," Khyana hissed in a dangerous voice that frightened even Kelria, glaring across the table with eyes full of hatred.

"Okay! Sorry. Apparently _Malfoy_ is training mini Death Eaters."

"Oh yeah? Who?"

"Donavan Wilkes, Ben Avery and Joseph Travers."

Khyana got a far-away look on her face as she mouthed "mini Death Eaters…mini Slytherins."

Kelria had no idea what that meant, and really thought Khyana had lost it this time.

"So, Wilkes, Avery and Travers have gotten themselves mixed up with Lucius, have they?"

"Apparently." She paused as Jonathan returned and put their plates in front of them. "Thank you, Jonathan." He smiled at both of them and then moved onto his next table. "Anyway," Kelria continued, "I went up to the school to talk to Dumbledore, and Wilkes was going on one of his little adventures while I was there, so I followed him. He went to the Hog's Head and met with Malfoy. They spoke for about ten minutes, but I was too far away to hear what they said and I couldn't risk getting any closer, not without an Invisibility Cloak. I followed Lucius when he left the inn, but he apparated and he must have known he was being followed, because I ended up in an empty field in the middle of nowhere when I followed him, and he wasn't anywhere to be found. So now I know at least that he's attempting to recruit the younger Slytherins."

Khyana nodded thoughtfully, and took a bite of her burger. "Sounds like it," she replied, shoving bun and meat into her cheek to talk.

Kelria made a disgusted face, and Khyana grinned.

"How are you doing with your investigation?" Kelria asked, stabbing some lettuce from her caesar salad with her fork.

Khyana shrugged. "I'm doing okay. I haven't been able to catch Bellatrix in any of those meetings Andi was talking about, but I've been able to get a few leads. I've been talking to Cam a bit…"

"Cam Jones?" Kelria asked, surprised. Khyana had broken up with Cam Jones in their seventh year, and as far as Kelria knew hadn't spoken to him since.

Khyana nodded. "He works in the Ministry, tracking Death Eater activity. He's not officially an auror, but he does research for them. So I've been talking to him a bit."

"Has his information been good?"

Khyana shrugged, popping another onion ring in her mouth. "Some of it. I think it depends what informant he gets it from. Some of them are better than others, I'm thinking. So I'll just need to discover who gives faulty information and who gives good information, and avoid following leads from the faulty ones."

"But sometimes even the best informant can get faulty info, and the bad ones could accidentally pick up on something good."

Khyana made a face. "I know. It's ticking me off. I can't risk not following a lead because it could prove to be a good one, but they're mostly just nothing."

Kelria nodded her understanding. "Yeah, that's annoying."

"Tell me about it. Especially when you're dealing with someone as slippery as Bellatrix Black Lestrange."

Kelria nodded. She understood, but there wasn't really much she could do to help her friend…

* * *

Sunday, Kelria kept her promise to herself. She studied hard all day, and by the time she went to bed she was confident that she would do well on her exams on the next two days. After that…well, she'd worry about those later. She knew Professors Dragh and North would have the toughest exams, and those were her first two.

At seven o'clock Sunday evening, she closed up all her books, and decided to run herself a hot bath.

"If I don't know it by now, I'm never going to know it," she said aloud, cleaning up her supper dishes in the kitchen.

"Don't know what?"

She turned, startled, and saw her boyfriend leaning against the doorframe of her kitchen.

She gave a glad squeal and rushed to him, nearly knocking him over in her happiness.

"Whoa!" He laughed, hugging her tight. "I'm glad to see you too, Kelria."

"How did it go? How are you? What happened? Did everything work out?" she asked, pulling away to look at his face.

Remus laughed again. "One thing at a time, Kelria. It went fine, I'm fine, everything that should have happened, happened, and everything worked out fine."

"I'm glad!" Kelria replied, snuggling close to him. "Don't go away again for a while, okay?"

Remus smiled and put his arms around her tight. "Okay."

* * *

**A/N:** _EXAMS ARE **SO** OVER! WOOT! Anthro was SO easy. Anyway, I'm very excited because my best friend who lives like 2 1/2 hours away is coming for a sleepover on Saturday night, and I haven't seen her since AUGUST! So I'm REALLY excited! Anyway, now I have to go e-mail JT and ask if I can borrow his LOTR movies for Saturday! R&R!_


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10: Exams**

Monday morning, Kelria woke at 6 with the alarm clock, groaning and rubbing her eyes. Then a single thought struck her. _Exams_…

She bolted out of bed, rushed through her morning preparations, and sat down at her kitchen table with a mug of hot tea, looking over her notes one last time.

Suddenly, there was a _pop_ and Khyana appeared in the kitchen, looking terrified.

"I'm going to fail, I'm going to fail, I'm going to _faaaaail_!" she wailed.

Kelria rolled her eyes. "Grow up, Khyana, you're not going to fail."

"Yes, I am," Khyana said, sitting down at the table looking dejected. "What am I going to do, Kelria? I'm going to fail and then I'll never become an auror and then I'll have to go into International Magical Cooperation and I dropped my course so I won't know anything and I'll have to watch all of you become aurors without me-"

"KHYANA!"

Khyana was shocked into silence, and Kelria fixed her with a stern glare. "You are _not_ going to fail. You sound like Lily in the seventh year."

"Well, I really _am_ going to fail! Especially Professor North's exam. His are always hard, I never pass!"

Kelria rolled her eyes. "You always pass. You just need to have a little confidence in yourself."

Khyana shook her head. "No way. I _know_ I'm going to fail."

Kelria wanted to slap her friend upside the head…so she did.

"What was that for?" Khyana demanded.

"For being such an insufferable prat," Kelria replied, and Khyana bristled. "Honestly, Khyana, grow up, you are not going to fail, you've never failed an exam in your life. So stop whining and get a grip!"

Khyana spun on the spot and disapparated, apparently going to look for someone more sympathetic. Kelria didn't mind; it gave her more time to study. The last thing she needed this morning was Khyana whining in her kitchen.

At 8 30, Kelria apparated to the auror school for her exam at 9 00. She walked through the mahogany front doors, and met a small group of peers in the front hall.

This graduating class was the largest in the school; they had almost managed to make two auror squads for their assignments. Kelria's group was a full squad and the other group was just missing one.

Khyana burst into the hall a few moments later, as Kelria was talking with Emily-Hope.

"Kelria!"

Kelria rolled her eyes at Emily-Hope. "She showed up in my kitchen at 6 30 this morning wailing that she's going to fail," Kelria hissed, and Emily-Hope giggled.

"Kel!"

"What do you want, Yana?"

Khyana hurried over, clutching her books tight to her chest. "I don't know any of this stuff, I'm going to-"

"Fail. Fine, fail then. I don't care," Kelria replied, glaring. "I'm sick of your whining, Khyana. Go tell it to someone who cares."

Being brought up as a Malfoy, Khyana didn't make an angry outburst; she just paled even more than usual and stalked off to talk to Lily.

"Wasn't that a little harsh, Kel?" Emily-Hope asked.

Kelria shook her head. "She'll be fine. She just wants attention."

At exactly 9 00, the doors to the exam room opened, and Professor Austeros let the students into the room.

Kelria was starting to feel a little nervous, but swallowed her fears, knowing she would do fine.

* * *

"Well, for Professor Dragh, that wasn't too bad," Lily commented.

"Wasn't bad? I totally failed."

Everyone rolled their eyes.

"Shut up, Na."

Khyana shrugged. "Well I did," she mumbled.

"And tomorrow's Professor North's…I'm really dreading that one."

Everyone shuddered.

"Well, I think Yana should get out of the exam, she wrote so many essays for him this year!" Lily said.

"What's this? Is Lily getting angry about something a teacher did?" Khyana asked teasingly.

Lily made a face. "Shut up, Na."

Everyone laughed, and then everything was silent. The noisy pub around them stopped, and the group of friends looked up from their drinks, confused.

James was the first on his feet with his wand out, followed immediately by Khyana and Kelria.

The three figures in the doorway smirked.

"Well, well, well…mini aurors. We could have some fun with this."

Recognising the voice immediately, Khyana stepped forward, her face nearly transparent.

"Sod off, Malfoy."

"Tsk tsk," Malfoy said, shaking his head. "That's not a very nice way to speak to your older brother, Khyana."

"You're not my brother," Khyana hissed.

Malfoy raised his eyebrows. "No…no, maybe I'm not. In that case, I feel no remorse about killing you. _Avada_-"

"_Protego_!"

"_Stupefy_!"

"_Rictusempra_!"

"_Expelliarmus_!"

The curses and hexes were flying, over the heads of the patrons in the pub, who had all jumped to the floor at the first sound of Malfoy's curse. Kelria wondered who had had the presence of mind to shout _expelliarmus_ when everyone had been shooting…had James shot a tickling spell? Kelria shook her head, then looked round. Lily was holding three wands besides her own in her hand, and Kelria smirked. Of course, it would be Lily.

"ENOUGH!" Lily shouted, and everyone fell silent. "I've had enough. You three," she said, gesturing to the Death Eaters in the doorway, "Leave. I'll mail you your wands…maybe. GET OUT!"

They looked at each other, and Malfoy smirked.

"We're not going to be told what to do by a mudblood like you, Evans."

"Here, then, let me help you," Khyana said in a dangerous voice. "_Dispensare_."

Suddenly, the Death Eaters were gone. Everyone looked at Khyana.

"Bloody Hell, Yana…" Kelria said softly. "What was that?"

Khyana shrugged. "Just something I picked up," she replied, sitting back down in her chair.

"Picked up where?" James demanded, sitting in his chair across from her. Everyone else filled in their chairs between the two.

Khyana shrugged again. "No where important. I got them to leave though, didn't I?"

"Did you do it illegally, Khyana?" James demanded. "I can't have my aurors doing illegal things."

"Your aurors?" Khyana asked, her voice dripping with contempt. "_Your_ aurors? I am not _your_ auror, James Potter. Do you really think I'd do something illegal?"

"Yes."

"Well, thank you for your confidence," Khyana said snidely, pushing back her chair and standing. "Well, I really must be going. Enjoy your little talk."

She left the pub abruptly, knocking over her chair as she left.

"It was definitely an illegal curse," Kelria said, nodding. "She wouldn't have reacted like that if it hadn't been. If it had been something you could find in _Standard Book of Spells_, she wouldn't have cared. And we'd all know how to do it."

Everyone nodded their agreement.

"Definitely illegal," Frank agreed.

* * *

The next day, as expected, Professor North's exam was killer. In the afternoon they had to write Professor Bow's exam, which was, as expected, the easiest one they had to write.

"Did I ever mention that I think Professor Bow is an idiot and his class is pointless?" Khyana asked as they left the exam room.

"Once or twice," Kelria replied, exchanging a grin with Lily.

Khyana had taken every opportunity of every day to tell everyone how she felt about Professor Bow and his subject, Case Studies. In his class, they studied how aurors before them had solved different types of cases…and Khyana always slept through it.

"I mean, why the hell do we need to know how Edward Scissorhands-"

"Bonefingers, Yana, Edward Bonefingers," Lily corrected her friend with a small smile.

"Whatever. Anyway, why do we need to know how he solved the case of the missing mummy?"

"It was the gold, Na, not the mummy," Kelria laughed.

"Whatever. It's not like we're going to use the same methods as him! I mean, come _on_! It took the guy two whole months just to get to Egypt!"

Kelria and Lily smirked at each other. "We know, Yan."

"Don't call me that. And another thing…"

Khyana went on and on about how pointless Case Studies was until the three girls met everyone else in the Three Broomsticks.

The friends had come to a consensus to not mention Khyana's spell from the night before in front of her. If she didn't want to share, that was her business.

"So, how did everyone find Bow's exam?" Frank asked.

"Well, _I_ thought-"

"Do _not_ get Khyana started, Frank," Lily said firmly. "We've already discussed Bow's exam. What did you lot think of North's?"

"Well, _I_ for one, failed it," Kelria said firmly, taking a long swig of Butterbeer.

"What's this?" Khyana asked, smirking smugly. "Come on, Kelria, have some self-confidence."

Kelria, in a moment of amazing maturity, stuck her tongue out at Khyana, who smirked wider.

"Alright, you two, enough," Lily said firmly. "How many more exams do we have?"

"Three," James replied. "Donnelly, Philips and Austeros."

Everyone groaned. Unlike at Hogwarts, the Headmistress of the Auror School taught classes as well as all her headmistress duties. Her class was basically just a harder version of the charms class they had taken at Hogwarts. Donnelly taught the basic spell course, which was like a harder version of DADA, and Philips…well, no one was really sure _what_ he taught. The title of his course was "Filling the Gaps"…and that's exactly what he did. Anything not taught in the other courses that people had questions about, that was what he discussed. And he took detailed notes about their class discussions for his exam paper.

"Philips' class is almost as much of a joke as Bow's," Khyana complained. "It's such a waste of time!"

"Oh come on, Khyana," Lily said teasingly. "You should have loved it. Who else answered 5 million of your questions about nothing in their classes?"

Khyana shrugged. "I had to keep him occupied. And I figured if he was going to be answering questions, they might as well have been mine. That way I don't need to study for his exam."

"And he's the only one who didn't yell at you every day for asking too many questions," James teased.

"Shut up, Potter. I'm not above hexing you into next week," Khyana replied.

Everyone shook their heads and took another draught of their drinks.

* * *

The last three exams were simple, and as Khyana had implied, most of Professor Philips' exam had to do with questions she had asked in class. She got an "O" in that class.

On the last day of exams, Frank, Remus, James and Sirius took their wives or girlfriends out to dinner to Marty's, as a special treat to Kelria and Khyana, and because they all wanted to try the food.

They spent the evening talking and laughing and having a good time, and celebrating the success of the auror students in their exams.

"They'll all be getting awards, you watch," Remus said teasingly.

"Not a chance!" Khyana cried. "There's no _way_ North is going to let me get an award."

Everyone laughed.

"I don't think Menin was really very fair to you this year, Khyana, especially since he knows about your illness," Remus said gravely.

"_Please_ don't call him Menin," Kelria said, shuddering. "It just seems weird that we're on a first-name basis with Professor North."

"He reminds me of Snape," Lily commented with a shudder.

At the mention of Snape, Khyana pursed her lips and became oddly quiet. Everyone looked at each other, but no one asked. They all knew better.

At the end of the night, everyone was in good spirits as they headed home. Kelria was very excited: she was now a full auror. She could concentrate on her assignments for the Ministry and the Order, and not have to worry about exams anymore. She felt free.

* * *

**A/N:**_ Well, there you have it. Based off my conversation with Kel on Monday before our math exams...My eyes keep sliding in and out of focus...I hate these contacts! And my ankle hurts...stupid sprain. Anyhow, R&R people! Maybe I'll even stop complaining!_


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11: Letters**

Kelria's feeling of freedom did not last long. The next day, James put them to work even harder on the assignment.

"I want weekly reports," he said in the meeting. "I want progress here, people! Exams are done, and this is our first priority. So get to work!"

Everyone left the cubicle grumbling darkly and muttering curses under their breath.

"Weekly reports?" Khyana exploded when she and Kelria reached Kelria's cubicle. "As if I don't already have enough crap to do!"

Kelria smiled. "Well, I'd hate to be him. He has to _read_ all those weekly reports."

Khyana grinned mischievously. "Oho! Mine is going to be _so_ long! I'll make it like twenty pages…he'll get every detail of my week."

Kelria laughed loudly. "I'm in!"

They went quietly to all the other cubicles of people from their squad, and everyone giggled and agreed to do the same, to put James off the idea of weekly reports. The only person they didn't go to was Lily, who would never have agreed.

Kelria and Khyana took the opportunity that day to go to Marty's again for lunch, figuring James was going to be keeping them quite busy over the next little while. They both took a quill, ink and parchment with them, to record everything that went on, for their weekly reports.

_I went to Marty's with Kel for lunch on Friday. We figured James would be keeping us very busy for the next little while, so we took the opportunity while we could. Jonathan and Julie were both working, and we had a nice chat with them about some new muggle film that they highly recommend. Maybe I'll talk Sirius into taking me sometime. I ordered my usual Deluxe Burger with onion rings, and Kel ordered the Chicken Caesar Salad. She's been doing that a lot lately…I think she's on a diet. Oh, and to drink, I had a root beer, and Kel had coca-cola. That's her favourite. She buys it all the time, even though Remus tells her not to, because it's bad for her. _

_At any rate, we had a nice luncheon together. We talked about the case a little bit, but mostly we talked about exams. I rambled on for a bit about how stupid Case Studies was, and Kel pretended to listen, but I don't think she was really paying that much attention. Then she rambled on for a bit about how pointless Professor Philips' exam was. I rather enjoyed that exam. I found it easy, since most of the questions had to do with questions I asked in class. Is this pointless enough for you, James?_

When Khyana readher report out loud to Kelria, Kelria nearly fell off her chair laughing.

"That's _awesome_, Yana!" she gasped. "I love it. James is going to KILL YOU!"

"I know," Khyana shrugged. "I don't care."

"Oh and by the way, I'm not on a diet, I just happen to like the Chicken Caesar Salad."

"Whatever."

* * *

On Saturday, Kelria and Khyana decided to do some joint research. They went to see Cam Jones, who worked every day of the week, to see what he had about the Lestrange and Malfoy families.

"Well, I haven't got anything new about the Lestranges, Yana," he said, while rummaging through a file drawer, "But I have something Kelria might find interesting."

He pulled out a thick folder and thumped it on the desk. It looked pretty heavy.

"That looks pretty heavy," Khyana said conversationally.

"Well, no one's come to me for information about the Malfoys yet, so I haven't given out any of the information in it. It's pretty heavy."

He rummaged through the file, finally pulling out three pieces of paper.

"This is the latest on Malfoy. He's hired three Hogwarts boys to do some work for him. So far, all they've done is-"

"Run simple errands, I know," Kelria said. "I've already been given all that information."

"Okay," Cam said, flipping to the last page. "This just came in yesterday. Malfoy had a meeting with Wilkes, and my informant was able to get a transcript of what went on."

Kelria's face lit up. "Are you serious?"

Cam nodded. "Here you go."

Kelria took the paper, her eyes glowing. "Thanks, Cam."

The two friends left the Ministry and apparated back to Kelria's house to look over the transcript.

"I'm so excited!"

* * *

"How's your French class going?"

Lezly shrugged. "It's kinda boring since Khyana dropped it."

Bobby's eyes widened. "What's Khyana's last name?"

"Um…Malfoy, I think. Why?"

Bobby looked like he was doing some quick thinking. "You know Khyana Malfoy?"

Lezly nodded, looking confused. "Yes. We're good friends. Why?"

"I need to get a message to her. Do you have an address for her? A phone number? Anything?"

Lezly nodded. "I have an address and phone number."

"Could you give her a message for me?"

Lezly nodded again, still confused. "Sure. What's the message?"

"Here, I'll write it out. Can you mail it for me?"

"I'll do better than that. I'm going to her house for dinner tomorrow night. I'll take it to her then."

"That'll be perfect."

Bobby got a pen and a piece of paper and began to write.

_Khyana,_

_I have valuable information for you, to solve your case. You will need it. Can you, James and Kelria meet me for lunch at noon on Monday at The Sultan's Cuisine? I'll give you the information then._

_Many thanks,_

_Rob Marsden_

* * *

At Kelria's, the two friends pored over the transcript for hours, not making any sense of it.

"Ugh!" Kelria cried. "This doesn't make sense."

"It's in code," Khyana replied. "I'll bet you anything. Lucius and Donovan must have a code that they use in case someone listens in on their conversations and does what Cam's informant did. Then whoever gets the transcript won't be able to read it anyway."

"Well that's just annoying and rude," Kelria said angrily.

Khyana shrugged. "That's Malfoy for ya."

"Yeah, I guess," Kelria replied.

Khyana glanced up at the clock and gasped. "Is that the time? I'm supposed to meet Sirius for dinner in ten minutes! I have to go, I'll see you Monday Kel, okay?"

"Yup. See you, have fun with Sirius."

After Khyana had left, Kelria sat with the transcript for another hour, trying to decipher Malfoy's code. She tried several different code cracking techniques Professor Donnelly had taught them, but none seemed to work. Malfoy, unfortunately, was too smart. She sighed, packed up the transcript and went to bed, frustrated.

* * *

On Sunday, Khyana allowed herself to sleep until noon, before rousing herself to get supper ready for when Lezly came.

She hadn't seen her friend since the day she'd dropped the French course, and was looking forward to catching up with her over dinner.

Five o'clock finally came, and Lezly was right on time.

"Hey!" Khyana said happily, giving her friend a big hug.

"Hey, Khyana, how are you?" Lezly asked, returning the hug.

"I'm great, how are you?"

"I'm doing really well actually."

"That's good. Come on in, supper's almost ready. We're just waiting for the chicken to finish."

Khyana had spent almost as much time making sure all her magical things were hidden as she had making dinner. She'd remembered at 2 00 that Lezly would probably think it odd to have a large cauldron in the middle of the living room, and had to hide it. Luckily, Ly had been to Khyana's before, so she wouldn't need a grand tour.

The timer on the chicken dinged, and Khyana pulled the large dish out of the oven, placing it carefully on the counter.

"Everything smells delicious, Khyana," Lezly said appreciatively.

"Thanks."

Once they were both seated and had their food, Lezly seemed to remember that she had important news.

"Oh! I almost forgot! The banquet for the night school classes at the university is two weeks from Saturday. I know you dropped the course, but Professor Laurent said that you're getting an award from last semester, so you should probably come."

"Okay. Yeah, that sounds like a plan," Khyana said, grinning. "I'll see if I can even talk Sirius into going with me."

Lezly grinned. "Good luck."

Khyana laughed. "Thanks."

Dinner passed in a pleasant catch-up period between the two friends. It wasn't until Lezly was almost out the door at ten o'clock that she pulled a piece of paper out of her pocket.

"Oh, here, I almost forgot. This is from my boyfriend, Bobby Masdem. He wanted me to give it to you."

Khyana took the note, puzzled, and thanked Lezly. Once her friend's car had disappeared around the corner, Khyana unfolded the note and read it. When she reached the end and saw who the letter was from, she collapsed into the chair in the front hall. It wasn't possible…

* * *

Khyana burst into James' cubicle early Monday morning, interrupting the meeting he was having with a very distraught Kelria.

"_What_, Khyana? I'm kind of busy."

"What are you two doing for lunch?"

"I'm going out with Lily…"

"No you're not."

"What?"

Khyana, eyes shining with excitement, pulled the note from Rob Marsden out of her pocket.

"The three of us are having lunch with Rob Marsden."

* * *

**A/N:**_ Yes, it's short, and yes, it's a cliffhanger. I love cliffhangers. My contacts are annoying...AND TORI'S COMING TOMORROW!!! Now I have to go clean my room..._


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12: Lunch With Rob**

James broke his plans with Lily immediately, apologising over and over.

"It's really fine, James," she repeated for the tenth time. "You can have lunch with me anytime, this may be a once in a lifetime opportunity. Go for it!"

"But-"

"No buts. Go already!"

She kissed her husband on the cheek and went back to her desk work.

James followed Khyana and Kelria out of Ministry, all three of them eager and excited about the meeting with Rob.

"So how exactly did you find out about this meeting, Yana?" James asked.

"His girlfriend gave me a letter."

James looked confused. "You're friends with Rob Marsden's girlfriend? I thought his girlfriend was Marlene McKinnon."

"Well, it was," Khyana agreed, "But apparently it's not anymore."

"Okay, then who is it?"

"Lezly Mayli."

"Your friend from your French course?" Kelria asked, surprised.

Khyana nodded. "That's the one."

"How did you find out?" James asked.

"She came to my place for dinner last night and she gave me a note as she was leaving."

"What did the note say?"

"That he has information that we will need for our investigation and he thought we might like it."

"We certainly would!" James agreed.

"That's what I figured," Khyana said sardonically. "That's why I brought you along."

When they reached the restaurant, Khyana told the hostess that they were there to meet a Bobby Masdem, and they were shown to a table in a back room.

"Who's Bobby Masdem?" James hissed as they followed the small blonde toward the back of the restaurant.

"Rob Marsden," Khyana hissed back.

James looked utterly confused, and Khyana smirked.

When they reached the table, both Khyana and James looked shocked and nearly fell over. Kelria couldn't quite figure out why…the man sitting at the table looked normal enough to her…

"Khyana! James! How are you?" the man boomed in a loud bass voice.

Khyana grinned. "Grand, Rob, and you?"

"I'm getting on alright," he replied, shaking hands with everyone. "This must be Kelria. It's nice to meet you. I've heard a lot about you."

"Really? From whom?" Kelria asked, confused.

Rob tapped the side of his nose secretively and smiled. "Now, now, I can't go giving away _all_ my secrets!"

Kelria chuckled, deciding quickly that she quite liked Rob Marsden.

"You said you had information for us, Rob?" James said, getting right to the chase.

"Oh come now, James," Rob said. "You could at least let me catch up a bit first!"

"Alright, catch up then," James said, smiling.

"How have you lot been? I mean, I've heard things, but not much. Not about you lot."

"We're good," Khyana replied, smiling.

"How's your Mora Menda, Yana?"

Khyana's smile faded. "It's under control."

Rob nodded. "That's good."

"How'd you know about that?"

He shrugged. "I know lots of things."

Khyana scowled. "I see."

"Look, Na, don't be mad. It's not my fault!"

"What's not your fault?"

Rob sighed and ran a hand through his hair, much like James often did.

"Okay, okay, so it's all my fault. Is that what you're going to tell me?"

"No."

Rob shook his head, a hint of a smile playing around his mouth again. "You're confusing, Khyana."

Khyana shrugged. "Oh well."

"So…" James said, sipping his water. "That information, Rob?"

Rob laughed. "I just can't distract you, Potter, can I?"

"Not a chance," James replied.

"Alright then. You two girls have been to see Andi Tonks, haven't you?"

Kelria and Khyana nodded.

"That's good. She's a smart woman. Her information is solid."

"I told you so, James," Khyana replied.

James shook his head at her, and she smirked. James rolled his eyes and looked down at his plate.

"At any rate, yes, Andi's information is solid, but she doesn't know everything. You've also been to see Cam Jones?"

The two girls nodded and James' head snapped up.

"Cam Jones? Does Sirius know this?"

Khyana rolled her eyes. "I don't need Sirius' permission to go see an informant."

James gave her a stern look, but said nothing. Kelria had a feeling her friend was going to get a strongly worded lecture after dinner.

"Again, Cam's information is solid most of the time…but he doesn't know everything…he knows less than Andi, actually."

"So, are you going to fill us in?" James asked, playing with the lettuce in his salad.

Rob grinned. "Yes, Potter, I'm going to tell you. Keep your cool."

"Well then, get to it."

Rob took a long drink from his water glass, wiped his mouth and exhaled. James looked annoyed, and Rob winked at Kelria, who grinned.

"So, Kelria."

"So, Rob."

"You're stalling, Marsden," James said angrily.

Rob smiled. "Maybe I am. But I really was going to speak to Kelria."

"Then get on with it!"

"Patience is a virtue, James," Khyana said mockingly.

James made a rude hand gesture, which Khyana quickly shot down.

"You're going to be a daddy soon, James. You can't go around doing stuff like that when the baby comes."

James gaped at her incredulously, but said nothing, and Rob laughed.

"Alright, before Potter here totally flips at me, I'll tell you all. Kelria, Malfoy's boys? Keep an eye on them. Especially that little Wilkes brat. He's bad news."

Kelria rolled her eyes. "That's all you have to say? I already knew _that_!"

Rob shook his head. "That's not all. Wilkes is running errands for Malfoy. To Severus Snape."

"I knew it!" Khyana hissed. "I _knew_ it!"

"Knew what?"

"I knew Snape was bad news!"

Rob looked confused. "Yeah…he's a Death Eater."

"He's also a member of the Order of the Phoenix," Khyana said quietly, and Kelria and James nodded their confirmation.

"What?!"

"I know. It's insane."

"Insane? It's downright stupid!"

Kelria nodded. "I know. Try telling that to Dumbledore."

Rob nodded. "Yeah, I can understand how that would be tricky."

"So, Malfoy's corresponding with Snape…anything else?"

Rob shook his head. "Not for you. Khyana, though. You need to be very careful. You know the woman who's been making your potion?"

"Lily?"

"What? No," Rob replied, confused. "Leanne Thompson."

"Oh. What about her?"

"She's been imperiused by Bellatrix Lestrange. She's under strict orders to kill you."

"How?" James asked.

"Poison," Rob replied. "She'll poison your potion."

Khyana shrugged. "I'm having Lily make it for me. I know Leanne's been imperiused."

Rob shook his head. "If you don't go back to her, they'll kill her."

Khyana swore loudly, causing several people to turn their heads her way. One older lady gave her a disapproving glare. Khyana ignored her.

"I can't go back, though."

"You have to. You don't have to drink the potion. Just go back to Leanne's and take the potion from her. And when you run out again, go back, so that the Death Eaters think she is poisoning you. They'll kill her otherwise."

Khyana sighed. "Alright, alright."

James looked at his watch and sighed. "As fun as it's been, Marsden, we have to get back to the Ministry."

Rob nodded. "I'll be in touch."

He stood and disapparated. The three young aurors stared at the spot where he had been sitting in disbelief, but looking around, Khyana realised that no one had noticed the large man disappear. It was as though he'd never been there in the first place…


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13: A Near Death Experience**

As they left the restaurant, James rounded on Khyana.

"You've been seeing Cam Jones? For real?"

Khyana rolled her eyes and kept walking. "I go with Kelria to see him when he has information for me. That's it, James, stop making such a huge deal out of it!"

James glared at her. "But you haven't told Sirius?"

Khyana stopped walking and rounded to face James. "James Potter, you keep your nose out of this! It's none of your bloody damn business! It's confidential, and I can't have my current boyfriend taking out my ex simply because he gives me information about a case I'm working. So you keep your bloody great mouth shut, you hear me?"

James bristled, but nodded stiffly. The walk back to the Ministry was done in strained silence.

* * *

The rest of the week was hectic for everyone, especially Khyana and Kelria. Kelria desperately tried to catch Snape in the act of communicating with Wilkes, but had thus far been unsuccessful. Khyana was trying to decide what to do about Leanne, and finally, on the Saturday after the lunch date with Rob, she went to see her friend.

Leanne answered the door, and her face broke into a huge grin.

"Yana!"

"Hi, Leanne," Khyana said, forcing a smile. "How are you?"

"I'm great, and you?"

"I'm pretty good."

"That's good. Won't you come in?"

Khyana, all her senses alert, nodded and entered the house.

Leanne led her into the small kitchen at the back of the house, where the older girl pushed a small button, thinking Khyana wouldn't notice.

"Do you need more potion?" Leanne asked. "You haven't been around for a while."

"Yeah, I think I do," Khyana replied, changing her original answer quickly. She didn't want to get her friend in trouble.

"I thought you might," Leanne replied, smiling. "I have some in the basement, you just wait here."

The older girl left, and Khyana went over to inspect the button she had pushed. It didn't give any indication, but she knew her friend had alerted the Lestranges to her presence in the house. She would have to be on her guard.

Leanne returned quickly with a large flask of Khyana's potion and handed it to her, smiling.

"There you go."

"Thanks."

Khyana put the flask down on the table and sat in one of the chairs. Leanne sat down across from her.

"So, how have you been, Yana?"

"I'm pretty good," Khyana replied, and then decided to go out on a limb. "I've received a lot of good information for this case I'm working. It's amazing how many good informants the Ministry has. I have access to a lot more than I ever expected."

Leanne didn't flinch, but her eyes flickered to the button, and Khyana struggled to hide her smirk. So she had been right; the button triggered some sort of bug for the Lestranges to listen in on the conversation.

A moment later, her suspicion was confirmed. There was a knock at the door, and Leanne went to answer it, returning in a few moments, followed closely by her visitors.

"Miss Malfoy."

"Bellatrix," Khyana replied coolly, standing.

"Good to see you."

"Wish I could say the same."

Bellatrix's lip curled in a sneer. "Watch your tone with me, Malfoy."

Khyana's temper flared, and she pulled out her wand.

Bellatrix laughed and pulled out her own. Rodolphus and Leanne did the same. All three wands were pointed in Khyana's direction, and she was starting to wish she'd brought Kelria with her.

Kelria wasn't there, however, and even Khyana knew better than to take on two Death Eaters and an imperiused person on her own, so she spun on the spot and disapparated, but not before Bellatrix shrieked her fury, yelling at Leanne, "I thought you said she needed more potion!"

Once safely back in her own home, Khyana pulled out her weekly report and added her meeting to it, leaving nothing out--including the decorations and curtain pattern in Leanne's house.

"See how you like that, James Potter!" she muttered. "That'll show you for lecturing me!"

* * *

Saturday night, Remus picked Kelria up at her house, and they headed to the Coliseum, an Italian restaurant in London, for dinner.

"This is awfully fancy, Remus," Kelria, who had gone shopping the previous day with Khyana for a fancy muggle dress for the occasion, commented.

Remus nodded, a twinkle in his eye. "Yes, that it is."

"Any particular occasion?" Kelria asked, raising her eyebrows.

Remus shrugged, shaking his head. "Nope."

"You're lying."

Remus laughed, his eyes twinkling. "Perhaps. You will find out, won't you?"

Kelria rolled her eyes. "Whatever, Remus."

The meal was very good, and afterward, they went for a little walk in the park.

"It's a New York night," Kelria said suddenly.

Remus looked at her, one brow raised. "What?"

"It's a New York night," Kelria repeated.

"Meaning what?"

"I want to go to New York," Kelria said simply.

Remus shook his head, a small smile playing around his lips. "Alright then. Central Park, three seconds."

The two spun on the spot and appeared seconds later in Central Park, New York City.

Remus hailed a carriage, and the two got in and sat together, looking out at the stars and talking.

Suddenly, Remus leaned forward and tapped the driver on the shoulder, who pulled on the reins and stopped the carriage. Remus jumped down and helped a very confused Kelria out of the vehicle.

"Remus, what the-?"

Remus simply shook his head and led Kelria to the edge of the bridge. There they stood for a few moments.

"Kelria, I have a question for you."

"Okay," Kelria said, still utterly lost and confused.

"Do you love me?"

Kelria looked startled. "Of course I love you, Remus."

"Then I have another question for you."

Kelria was starting to piece things together in her head. "Remus…"

Remus got down on the ground on one knee, a ring suddenly in his hand. "Kelria Song, will you marry me?"

Kelria smiled and then laughed, tears running down her face. "Of course, Remus," she said, feeling a little choked up.

Remus grinned widely, placed the ring on her finger and stood up, spinning her around and kissing her.

"I'm very glad," he murmured.

* * *

When Kelria got home, the first thing she did was call Khyana.

"You'll never guess what happened tonight, Na!"

"Well, I think you're going to tell me anyway, so I don't need to guess," Khyana said sleepily.

"Remus asked me to marry him!"

"What?!" Khyana was suddenly wide awake. "Kel, that's awesome!"

"I know! Will you be my maid of honour?"

"You bet I will! Wow, Kel, that's so cool."

Kelria nodded, realising Khyana couldn't see her, but unable to say anything.

"Hey, Kel, I'd love to stay up 'til all hours with you talking about this, but I'm really tired so I'm going to go to bed, okay?"

"Alright, I'll see you later, Yana."

"See you."

* * *

Sunday afternoon, Khyana received the tickets for her French class banquet in the mail, and quickly apparated to Sirius' house.

"Sirius!"

She heard vague noises from the bedroom, and hurried upstairs, banging on the wall and steps as she went.

"Sirius!" she called again, banging on his bedroom door.

He opened the door slowly, and peered at her through a crack.

"Yeeeeeees?"

Khyana rolled her eyes and reminded him about the dinner for her French class the following week.

"You're still coming, right?"

"Of course!" Sirius replied, looking shocked. "I wouldn't miss it!"

"Good," Khyana smiled. "I've got your ticket, so if you weren't coming, I'd have to find someone else to come with me."

"I'll be there," Sirius assured her.

"Good. Now what are you hiding from me?"

"Hiding?" Sirius repeated, opening the door fully. "Nothing. Why?"

Khyana raised one eyebrow sceptically. "Then why didn't you open the door fully before?"

Sirius shrugged. "I like to be mysterious."

Khyana rolled her eyes again, spun on the spot and apparated back to her own house.

* * *

**A/N:**_ There you go! I know it's been a long time coming, but I've been very busy. The next few shouldn't take as long to get up...But we'll have to see. R&R please!_


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14: Lectures, Announcements and Babies**

Monday morning was not pleasant. James collected everyone's weekly reports, and read as much of them as he could before lunch, at which point he burst into Khyana's cubicle (where most of the team had gathered to laugh at James) in fury, throwing the reports down on her desk.

"What is this?!" he exploded.

Khyana calmly browsed the reports.

"Looks like everyone's weekly reports to me," she replied composedly.

James' face was nearly purple, and most of the team were having the same problem, although theirs was due to trying not to laugh, as opposed to James' fury.

"It _should_ be everyone's weekly reports. Read the top one."

Khyana calmly opened the folder, which was clearly marked "EMILY-HOPE" and opened the front cover. She cleared her throat and began to read.

"_Monday, July 22. This morning was fairly boring, James told us we had to write these stupid weekly reports, so that's what I'm doing. I spent most of the morning doing…well, basically nothing. Sirius stopped by around noon, looking for Yana, but she'd gone out with Kelria. I had lunch by myself in my cubicle. I had cucumber sandwiches, a bag of potato chips, and a juice box. Muggles are really very ingenious! Why haven't wizards thought of juice boxes? I mean, really!"_

"That's enough!" James said angrily. "What is that? Juice boxes, Emily-Hope?"

Emily-Hope shrugged, a big grin on her face. "I had to express my opinion, James."

"Whose bright idea was this?"

"You have to ask?" Khyana said snidely.

James glared at her. "You?"

"Of course me," Khyana replied, smirking widely and bowing.

James shook his head, and left the cubicle, calling over his shoulder, "Lily, talk some sense into your friends!"

Lily glared around at her team, who all looked a little sheepish, even Khyana.

"Come on, guys! James is really stressed out right now. Cut him a little slack, eh?"

"Well, it _was_ funny," Kelria said sheepishly.

"Just leave James alone, okay?"

"Sure, Lil. And you tell him to stop with the ridiculous reports, okay?" Khyana replied, starting to get a little angry.

Lily sighed and rolled her eyes. "Please don't start with me, Na. This baby's due any day, I don't need more stress from you."

Lily left the cubicle, followed closely by the rest of the team, leaving Khyana and Kelria alone.

"Maybe we went a little too far with this," Kelria said quietly.

Khyana shrugged and returned to her work. "Maybe. But he'll live."

Kelria shook her head. "Not everyone's a Malfoy, Na."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Khyana snarled, whirling around to face Kelria.

Kelria shrugged and started to leave the cubicle. "Just that not everyone can handle as much as you can."

* * *

Tuesday night (technically, Wednesday morning), James, Khyana, Kelria, Remus and Sirius all had a pretty bad scare.

Kelria was woken up about 3 am by the phone ringing in her ear.

"Hello?" she said groggily.

"Kel, 'tis Yana. Lily's in labour at St. Mungo's. Call Remus and get down here ASAP!"

Kelria hung up the phone, pulled on her work robes, put her wand in her pocket, spun on the spot and apparated to Remus' front door.

She pounded on the door over and over again until her fiancé opened the door, looking very groggy.

"Kel!" he exclaimed, suddenly wide awake. "What's wrong?"

"Lily's in labour! Get dressed, we're going to see her."

Remus waved his wand once, was suddenly fully dressed, and the two spun on the spot, appearing seconds later in the St. Mungo's lobby.

"Kel, Remus!"

The two approached Sirius, Khyana, Peter, Frank and Alice, who were in the waiting room. Sirius was pacing constantly, and Khyana was sitting, but agitated, and Peter was the only one who looked calm. Frank and Alice looked just as agitated, and Alice looked like she was even trying to suppress some kind of pain. Kelria remembered vaguely that Alice's due date was around the same time as Lily's…

"Sirius, sit down!" Khyana exclaimed finally. "You're going to wear a hole in the floor, and pacing won't help Lily any. Sit."

He sat down beside her, and Kelria and Remus sat in the two chairs across from them.

"How long has she been in there?" Remus asked.

Khyana glanced down the hall quickly before replying, "About four hours. James told Sirius about fifteen minutes ago. The healers don't think it'll be too much longer."

Remus nodded and the four fell into an uneasy silence. Sirius stood and began pacing again, to everyone's annoyance.

About two hours later, a healer came down the hall and approached them.

"Excuse me, are you the Potters' friends?"

Sirius and Remus stood, and Khyana replied, "Yes."

"I'm Healer Montgomery. Mrs. Potter has given birth to a very healthy baby boy. They would like to see you all."

Everyone walked down the hall behind Healer Montgomery, wide grins on everyone's faces.

Lily was sitting up in the bed holding the baby, looking flushed and exhausted but very happy. James was standing to the side, looking extremely proud.

"Hey, congratulations, Prongs!" Sirius said happily, hurrying to embrace his friend.

"Thanks, Padfoot. His name is Harry."

"Harry…James?" Khyana asked, a sly smile on her face.

"You bet," James replied proudly. "Harry James Potter."

Everyone laughed, and then Alice cried out in pain, doubling over.

"Alice?" Frank said worriedly, grabbing her arms to hold her up.

"I think I'm going into labour," Alice gasped.

Everyone groaned, and the healers hurried Alice and Frank into the next room.

For the next four hours, the seven friends in the Potter room admired the new baby, took turns holding him, and listened to Alice's screams from next door.

Remus and Kelria finally stood, holding hands.

"We don't want to take away from all the attention little Harry's getting, but we have an announcement too," Remus said. "We're getting married!"

Everyone made glad exclamations and hurried to embrace their two friends.

"You're going to have to come here to hug me," Lily said, a big grin on her face, "Because I can't stand up."

Everyone laughed and Remus and Kelria went to her side so she could give them each a hug.

"Khyana's already agreed to be my maid of honour," Kelria said, grinning.

"What?!" Sirius exclaimed. "You never told _me_ they were getting married!"

"_You_ were too busy being mysterious when I stopped by on Sunday," Khyana replied coolly. "And besides, it's their announcement, I'm not going to ruin it for them by telling everyone!"

Suddenly, there was a loud scream from next door, and then the sound of a baby wailing. Everyone looked at each other with wide grins.

The healer hurried over to the room and poked her head in the door.

"Mr. and Mrs. Longbottom would like you to know that it's a boy, and they've named him Neville. You may go in in a little while to see him."

"They can come now!" Alice's voice sounded from the next room.

"Tell Alice and Frank I say congratulations," Lily said. "James, darling, will you take Harry, please? I think I'm going to go to sleep."

"That sounds like a good idea," James replied, hurrying to take the baby. "You rest."

The rest of the party hurried next door to admire baby Neville for a while, before everyone went home to sleep.

Kelria fell asleep with a wide grin on her face. Today had been almost perfect. Now all that needed to happen was Sirius and Khyana's engagement…

* * *

**A/N:**_ YAY! So now Kel and Remus are engaged, and Alice and Lily have had their babies. But don't expect another big thing for a while, I have to spread these things out, you know! R&R please!_


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15: The Perfect Day For A Banquet…Almost**

Saturday dawned bright and beautiful. The perfect day for an awards banquet.

Khyana and Kelria had to go to work, since they had missed it on Wednesday, but they didn't really mind. Khyana had the banquet that night to look forward to, and Kelria was going out with Remus. Around noon, Sirius burst into the office, just as Khyana was getting ready to go for lunch, and stopped outside her cubicle, grinning.

"Yana, you'll never guess what just happened!"

"Well then, I supposed you're going to tell me, are you?"

"James and I got tickets to the Appleby Arrows game tonight! Isn't that great?"

"Well, yes, but-"

"I gotta run, we have to go get ready!"

Sirius pecked Khyana on the cheek quickly and ran out of the room.

"I-but-I-SIRIUS!"

But Sirius had already left. Khyana, debating whether she was furious with him or not, made her way slowly to Kelria's cubicle and leaned on the door.

"Hey, Kel, what are you doing tonight?"

"I'm going out with Remus. You have that awards banquet with Sirius, right?"

"Well, you're half right. Sirius just came and informed me that he's not going."

"What?!"

"Yeah, he and James got tickets to the Quidditch game, so they're going to that instead."

"James' wife just had a baby and he's going to the _Quidditch_ game?" Kelria asked, incredulous.

"Apparently."

Kelria shook her head. "Well, I can break my date with Remus if you want me to go with you."

Khyana shrugged. "I don't want to intrude. I'll just go by myself."

"You most certainly will not, I'll go with you. Here, just let me write a letter to Remus, and then we'll go."

"We don't have to leave right now, Kel. The banquet doesn't start until 7!"

"But I have to get a dress, and we have to get our hair done and…oh, there's so much to do, Yana! Come on!"

* * *

At 4 30, the two friends arrived back at Khyana's house, armed with supplies to get ready for the banquet. Kelria had bought a new dress, as well as a multitude of hair supplies with which she insisted she _was_ going to do Khyana's hair, whether the younger girl wanted it done or not.

So, with tools in hand, Kelria set about putting Khyana's hair in an elaborate up-do, which Khyana complained about to no end.

"That _hurts_, Kel! OUCH! Stop, my hair doesn't stay in curls! Oh, maybe it does, look at that. But it won't stay in for long. You'll have to use that whole can of hairspray. Here, why don't you just leave my hair alone and do your own? Really, Kel, this is too much, OW that _hurt_, stop pulling so hard!"

"If you would stop _complaining_, Sara Khyana," Kelria replied, pulling on a particularly difficult knot, "It wouldn't hurt so much!"

"OUCH!"

"Khyana, I am going to put a silencing charm on you very soon if you don't shut up."

And so, Khyana sat in a brooding silence, arms folded, pout securely in place, while Kel worked on her hair until 5 30, when she set about doing her own.

"Kelria, why didn't we just use our wands to do our hair?" Khyana asked suddenly.

Kelria got a sly smirk on her face. "Because I like to see you suffer, Khyana."

Khyana rolled her eyes and went up to her bedroom to get changed.

By 6 30, the two friends were all set and ready to go to the banquet.

"Well, we could do things the boring way and apparate…" Kelria said thoughtfully, "Or we could do things the fun way and rent a limo!"

"What?"

"Yeah, apparating sounds best to me, too. Do you think we could go now?"

"I'm sure we could. They said they were serving appetizers at 6 30…"

"What? Food already? What are we doing sitting around here then, let's go!"

Khyana rolled her eyes as Kelria spun on the spot and disapparated, following her friend quickly.

The two appeared about a block from the university, and hurried to the campus.

When they arrived, Khyana quickly located her small group of friends and dragged Kelria over to introduce them.

"Khyana!"

The four girls in the group squealed in delight when they saw her, and Khyana grinned.

"Kelria, this is Lezly, Eliza, Anna and Mackenzie. Girls, this is Kelria. She's just here for the food."

"Hey, it's a free meal for me!"

"Kelria can't cook," Khyana said in an aside to the other girls.

"At all?"

Kelria shook her head.

"Did Remus know this when he proposed?" Khyana asked teasingly.

Kelria shrugged. "Why do you think we always go out?"

"I thought Sirius was coming with you, Na," Lezly said, confused.

Khyana's face darkened as she replied, "He was. He made other plans."

"What a jerk."

"It's okay, Khyana, you can just hang out with us for the night."

"Thanks, Anna."

"No problem," Anna replied, a big grin on her face. Everyone laughed.

"What about you, Ly, is Bobby coming?"

Lezly nodded. "Yeah, he should be here any minute."

"He's a better boyfriend than Sirius, apparently," Kelria muttered darkly.

Khyana shrugged. "I should have known Sirius was going to do something like this."

"Hang on a second," Anna said suddenly. "Did you just say Kelria's boyfriend proposed, Khyana?"

Khyana gaped at her friend. "I said that like a million years ago, Anna."

Anna shrugged. "My brain processes things slowly, Na."

"Well, congratulations, Kelria," Lezly said, grinning.

"Thanks," Kelria replied, feeling a little uncomfortable.

"What about you, Khyana?" Mackenzie asked. "Are we hearing any wedding bells in your near future?"

"Yeah, Yana, what's up with that?" Eliza asked, a mischievous twinkle in her eyes.

Khyana burst out laughing. "Sirius? Married? HA! That's a laugh. He can't even commit to a simple dinner, let alone a marriage! No, my dear girls, no wedding bells in _my_ near future."

Kelria looked thoughtful and didn't say anything for a moment. The other five girls started on another topic, but she remained focused. Khyana had brushed off the comment of her friends like it was no big deal, Sirius' lack of commitment, but Kelria knew the younger girl well enough by now that she knew it was starting to wear on Khyana, not having a boyfriend who's main priority was his commitment to her. She made a decision to have a little chat with Sirius in the near future…

Bobby Masdem arrived at that moment, and discreetly called the attentions of Khyana and Kelria to himself, and beckoned them to him.

The two girls excused themselves and went to see him.

"I'd appreciate it if you two wouldn't mention to Lezly that you know me, okay?"

"Why?" Khyana demanded, just as Kelria was about to agree.

Bobby shrugged. "Because that would be awkward. She doesn't know I'm a wizard, let alone an auror informant. So don't mention anything about it, okay?"

Khyana shrugged. "Okay, whatever."

"Thanks."

The banquet started at precisely 7, and the five girls and their guests (all except Eliza and Mackenzie, who didn't have guests) sat at a table together, and they spent a lot of the time catching up with Khyana and getting to know the guests.

Professor Laurent came around about halfway through and said hello to Khyana and met everyone's guests.

"_Bonjour_, Khyana!"

"_Bonjour_, Professor!" Khyana replied.

"I'm glad you decided to come. Lezly said your boyfriend was coming…?"

"Yes, he was supposed to, but he backed out at the last minute. This is my best friend, Kelria Song."

"Hello, Kelria," the woman said, smiling widely. "It's very nice to meet you."

"You too," Kelria replied.

"Well, I must keep moving. It was nice to see you again, Khyana."

"You too, Professor," Khyana replied as Professor Laurent moved away.

At the end of the dinner, Professor Laurent stood and called for attention.

"I'm sorry to interrupt your chit-chatting, but we really need to get on with our program."

Everyone quieted quickly, most of them used to Professor Laurent's strict "no talking" rule in her classroom.

"Thank you. Alright, so we're here tonight to honour a number of students who have done exceptionally well in this class. We have quite a few academic awards to give out, and we'll start with the honour roll. As your name is called, please come forward."

Kelria tuned the teacher out, watching all the students filing up to the front to get their awards. This wasn't Khyana's award, so she didn't really need to pay attention, she didn't know any of these people.

"And now we'll move on to the specialized awards. First off, we'd like to honour our most improved student. I know, this sounds really cheesy and lame, but it's true. This person, coming into this class, had no previous experience in French at all. She came in and had no idea even how to say simple things. Now she is almost fluent, she can carry on an intelligent conversation, and I'm very proud of her. So come on up here, Khyana."

Kelria and those at her table cheered the loudest of everyone there, and everyone gave Khyana a standing ovation.

"It's a good thing Malfoys don't blush," she whispered to Kelria when she returned with her plaque.

Kelria smiled, then her smile faded slightly. Sirius should be sitting in her place, congratulating Khyana. Her anger with her friend's boyfriend increased.

* * *

**A/N:**_ Well, there you go. This one's pretty long...and then next one should be interesting...so R&R please people!_


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16: Repercussions**

Kelria and Khyana apparated back to Khyana's house after the banquet, talking and laughing.

"That was fun, I'm glad I went," Kelria commented.

"Yeah, it was fun, wasn't it?"

"Well, I should get going. I'll see you Monday at work."

"Yep, see you."

Kelria spun on the spot and apparated back to her own house, leaving Khyana alone. The younger girl sat on her couch and thought about the evening for about five minutes, before going to bed.

About ten minutes after she'd settled in to her bed, the doorbell rang. Thinking it might be someone important, she hurried downstairs and opened the door. Her boyfriend stood on the porch.

"Oh," she said, "it's you."

"Well, you don't need to sound so excited. Can I come in?"

"No."

Sirius looked confused. "Why not?"

"I don't want to talk to you."

Sirius' confusion increased. "Why not?"

Khyana raised an eyebrow and made to close the door. "Think about it, Sirius. I shouldn't have to explain _everything_ to you, you're not a child."

With that, she closed the door in his face, and in confusion, he apparated to Kelria's, pounding on the door.

The redhead answered the door, looking like she'd cut short her make-up-removal process to do so. Her face clouded in anger when she saw him.

"Oh, it's you."

Sirius rolled his eyes. "You too? I was just over at Yana's and she wouldn't even talk to me."

"I wouldn't either if I was her," Kelria replied.

"Why not?"

Kelria sighed in exasperation. "_Think_, Sirius! What's today?"

"Um…Saturday?"

"Yes, Saturday. Saturday the what?"

"Um…"

"The THIRD, Sirius! Saturday, August 3rd! What's so important about August 3rd?"

Sirius looked confused for a second, then smacked himself in the forehead. "Tonight was that dinner, wasn't it? For Yana's class?"

"Yes, it was. And you know what? I went with her. You know what award she got? Most improved student, Sirius. I have never been more proud of her. It shouldn't have been me sitting there with her, it should have been you! Your lack of commitment is starting to annoy _me_, Sirius, so how do you think it's affecting Yana? Huh? She's not going to wait around forever for you to mature, you know. There are _tons_ of guys lined up to date her, but she keeps turning them down. 'I have a boyfriend,' she says. When they point out that you don't really have much commitment, she says, 'but that's just the way he is.' Well, that's not good enough anymore, Sirius. One of these days, she's going to wake up and realise that you're _never going to change_! And then she'll ditch you for one of those other guys, the ones who remember little things like anniversaries and dinner plans and don't go running off to Quidditch games, no matter how much they want to. Alright? So you better get your act together soon, or you're going to find yourself single faster than you can say "Quidditch". And then you can go to as many Quidditch games as you like."

With those words, Kelria too shut the door in Sirius' face, and he heard her going back upstairs to finish her make-up removal.

Having been told in no uncertain terms that he was not wanted there, Sirius left Kelria's house feeling more than a little rejected and down. In fact, he felt horrible! How could he have been such a jerk to Khyana? He knew better than to go back to her house while she was still angry, so he walked down Kelria's street, kicking loose stones as he went. If commitment was what Khyana wanted, then commitment she would get.

'_Who are you kidding, Black_?' he asked himself. _'Commitment? You? Ha! That's a laugh. You couldn't even commit to do _homework_ at Hogwarts, what makes you think you're ready for a commitment like a girlfriend?'_

"I'm going to prove you wrong," he said aloud. "I'm going to be the perfect boyfriend!"

* * *

The baby was crying…again. James moaned and rolled over, and was just about to go get him when there was a loud pounding on the door.

Suddenly, he and Lily were both wide awake.

"You get the door, I've got Harry," Lily said quietly, and James nodded, grabbing his wand from the night table.

He walked downstairs cautiously, and looked through the peephole and saw…

"Good God, Sirius, you scared me half out of my wits!" James cried, opening the door to admit his best friend.

"I've got a problem, James," Sirius said, entering the house as Lily came down the stairs with the baby in her arms.

"Well, yes, we're aware, Sirius," Lily said teasingly.

"No, Lil, I'm being serious."

"You're _always_ serious, Sirius!" James said.

Sirius glared at the couple. "Alright, enough! I'm in big trouble, James."

"Did you kill someone?"

"No."

"Then it's nothing we can't handle. What'd you do?"

"I blew of Khyana to go to the Quidditch game with you."

"On second thought, mate, maybe you better hire a professional. I'm not so good at the whole "dealing with Khyana" thing."

"But Lily is. Lil, help?"

Lily sighed. "You blew her off to go to the Quidditch game? How important was the thing you blew off?"

"Very. It was her awards banquet for her French class."

"That's it, mate, you might as well _Avada Kedavra_ yourself right now, she's never going to forgive you."

Sirius looked even more dejected. "That's what Kelria said."

"Oh, don't listen to them, Sirius. Khyana may have Malfoy tendencies, and it might take her a long time to get over it, and you're going to have to work really hard to regain her trust-"

"So basically, give up now," James interrupted.

Lily hit him. "No, don't give up. You love Khyana, right?"

"Yeah."

"Well then, you're going to have to put some effort into this relationship, Sirius Black. You may have been able to coast along until now with your pretty face, but from now on, I have a feeling that Khyana's not going to be so lenient with you."

"Well, thanks for the encouragement, Lil," Sirius said sarcastically. "So, where do I start, guru?"

"Well, flowers would be a nice way to start," Lily replied thoughtfully. "Maybe…um…I dunno. What kind of flowers does Khyana like?"

"Lilies," Sirius replied. "She likes lilies."

"So do I," Lily replied with a grin. "So, send her lilies…and then you need to send her chocolates, and take her out to lunch, and say you're sorry a million times, and promise to make it up to her, but she won't believe you so then you'll have to prove it, because she's done with just believing everything you say…and I think that's about it," she finished, finally taking a breath.

Both Sirius and James were gaping at Lily with confused and blank looks on their faces.

"Care to repeat all that?" Sirius said. "Slowly?"

Lily shrugged. "Apparently it's not that important to you. Start with the flowers and chocolate, and see where it goes from there."

Sirius nodded decisively. "Flowers and chocolate. Right. Got it. Thanks, Lily, you're the greatest," he said, kissing her on the cheek and hurrying out the door."

"I know," Lily said smugly, smiling to herself.

"Yes, you are the greatest," James replied, kissing her soundly and then returning to bed.

* * *

Sunday morning, when Khyana woke up, there was something strange tickling her nose. She opened her eyes in alarm, and saw a bouquet of lilies floating beside her bed, bouncing against her face every now and then. She sat up and grabbed them out of the air, reading the small card attached with a distant look on her face.

_To my favourite girl,_

_I'm proud of you._

_Sirius_

She rolled her eyes. It seemed a shame to waste good flowers, however, so she took them downstairs and put them in a vase with some water, and sat down to eat her breakfast.

About ten o'clock, there was a loud knock at her door, and she opened it to reveal her three best friends.

"Good morning, Khyana!" Alice said cheerfully as the three girls pushed their way into the house.

"Um…hi?" Khyana replied, looking after them, very confused.

"We've come to cheer you up," Lily explained, and she waved her wand, creating a playpen for Harry and Neville. She and Alice placed the babies in the enclosure, and then the three ladies sat themselves comfortably around Khyana's table, leaving their hostess still a little shocked and confused.

"Who said I needed cheering up?" Khyana demanded, recovering enough to remember that she should probably put on a pot of tea and coffee.

The three at the table exchanged looks that clearly said "poor, dear, confused, blonde Khyana".

"You _obviously_ need cheering up," Kelria explained, "After last night."

"Last night? I had a blast last night."

"We mean the part about Sirius," Alice said.

"Who?"

"See what I mean?"

Khyana sighed and sat down in the last chair with a sigh.

"Nice lilies. Courtesy of Sirius, I assume?" Lily said with a small smile.

"Yes," Khyana replied. "But just because I'm keeping his flowers doesn't mean I forgive him."

"Oh I know," Lily replied. "I had a little chat with him last night."

"So did I," Kelria added. "And I told him in no uncertain terms that he better get his act together or you're going to ditch him for one of the other million guys chasing after you."

"There aren't a million guys chasing after me…there isn't even one!" Khyana protested.

"I know. But I figured I'd stretch the truth a little, make him sweat a bit. No need to thank me, I know you'd do the same if Remus were being a jerk."

"But Remus would never be a jerk," Alice pointed out, "Because it's Remus."

"True," Kelria agreed thoughtfully. "Ah well. I'm sure Khyana knows what I meant."

Khyana, who was still a little confused and shocked, merely nodded her head. In truth, she had no idea _what_ she would do if Remus were being a jerk…because that would be so unlike Remus, she figured she'd probably be even more confused than she was at that moment.

"And I had a little chat with him, too," Lily added. "He came to my house looking for help from James, and I ended up telling him that he needed to get his act together too…although I don't think I used _quite_ the same wording as Kel here…"

Once Khyana got over the shock of having her three best friends presume that she needed cheering up and invading her house, she actually relaxed and the four friends spent the day drinking all the tea and coffee Khyana had in the house, reliving their Hogwarts days, and bashing Sirius, all before tea time…not that they much cared about tea time, since they'd been drinking tea all day anyway!

It wasn't until about 11 o'clock, when the four friends could no longer keep their eyes open without assistance and they were all yawning so widely and so often that they couldn't even speak, that the three visitors decided that maybe it was time to get on home.

"I'll see you all at the Order meeting on Tuesday, right?" Lily asked, as Kelria helped her into her coat.

"Of course."

"Great. Until Tuesday, then!"

Once she was alone, Khyana thought back over the day. It had been good to just have a talk with her girlfriends. She couldn't remember the last time the four of them had had a chat like the one they'd had today. They were all so busy, she and Kelria with their auror stuff (and Lily until very recently) and now Lily and Alice with their babies…it was good to suspend reality for a little while and pretend they were still at school.

Khyana waved her wand once and her house was in impeccable order again. She then headed up to bed, where she slept uninterrupted until the alarm clock woke her at 6 30.

* * *

**A/N:**_ Well, there you go...I hope it works this time. Anyway, as I said the LAST time I put this chapter up mutters darkly under her breath about stupid sites that don't work... after this next chapter, I'll prolly skip to Christmas...because I'm running out of ideas. And that wouldn't be good. So R&R...if this works._


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17: Issues**

Monday morning rolled around, and Kelria found herself once again sitting in her cubicle staring at a blank piece of paper. She had got nowhere with the information she had received from Rob Marsden, and she was starting to wonder if she ever would. As far as she knew, Khyana hadn't gotten much either.

After the previous week's fiasco, James had not asked for another weekly report from anyone, and Kelria was glad. They were annoying to have to write, and she was glad to be rid of them.

Around lunchtime, everyone except James had gathered in the lunchroom, everyone having elected to eat in the office that day. Kelria was fairly surprised when Emily-Hope, usually so quiet, stood up and began to speak.

"Guys, I've been thinking. Don't you think maybe we've been a little rough on James?"

"Meaning what?" Aaron asked.

"Well, just that the thing with the weekly reports _was_ kind of harsh…"

"He set them," Khyana replied with a shrug. "He had it coming."

"But that's just it!" Emily-Hope insisted. "He _didn't_ have it coming! He's the leader in this squad, he can do things like that! And we_ elected_ him leader of the squad!"

"That's only because there weren't any other options," Harvey pointed out.

"Exactly!" Emily-Hope exclaimed, starting to get annoyed with her team. "No one else was brave enough to stand up and say, I'll be the leader. James was the only one willing to take on the responsibility. And we haven't really been fair to him. He has the right to assign weekly reports, or anything else he wants to assign to us! We _gave_ him that right!"

"Emily-Hope's right," Khyana spoke up, shocking everyone. "No one else wanted the responsibility. And don't you remember how enthusiastic we all were to have James as our leader? James Potter is one of the best leaders I know, and we need to give him another chance."

"Yana, are you feeling okay?" Frank asked, concerned.

"Yes I am!" Khyana exploded. "James is a good leader! We owe him an apology."

Everyone stared from Khyana to Emily-Hope, and then Khyana stood and left the room. Everyone else followed, eager to see what she was going to do.

"James," she said loudly, approaching his cubicle.

James looked up from his paperwork, saw his whole team standing before him, and looked a little frightened.

"Yes?"

"We want to apologise," Khyana responded. James looked shocked. "We've been real jerks lately. We haven't treated you with the respect you deserve as our leader. So we're sorry."

"Um…apology accepted?" James said, still confused and a little scared.

"Great. Alright, everyone, show's over," Khyana said loudly. "Back to lunch."

* * *

Albus Dumbledore was surprised that Monday afternoon by a visit from a former student and very good friend of his. As the Order member (one of the best, being a trained auror) entered, he looked up from his paperwork with a wide grin.

"Good afternoon, Miss Malfoy. How may I help you?"

Khyana looked a little uncomfortable, but Dumbledore motioned for her to sit, and she did, staying perched on the edge of the chair.

"What can I do for you?" Dumbledore asked again, rephrasing his question.

"Um…I wanted to talk to you about…the Order."

"Very well. Talk away."

"I want to quit."

Whatever Dumbledore was expecting, this was not it. He sat forward and steepled his fingers on his desktop.

"Are you sure, Khyana?"

"Yes."

"May I ask why?"

Khyana took a deep breath. "Because of Snape."

Dumbledore stiffened. "What about Severus?"

"I can't work with him," Khyana replied. "I can't trust him, I know you do, I've heard your spiel before, but I just can't. I can't trust him and I don't want to. I know him too well to ever be able to trust him. And I've heard recent evidence stating that he is still in contact with the Death Eaters, and it's not on your orders either, so don't try to tell me it is. I just can't handle it. And with my auror work on top of it, I just can't handle everything. My illness has been getting out of hand lately, and I've had to cut back on the amount of magic I'm using. No one else knows this, but the only magic I do is apparate, unless it's absolutely necessary. I just can't handle it."

Dumbledore looked thoughtful for a moment, and then nodded. "Well, I'm very sorry you feel this way, Khyana, but if you're sure…?"

"I am."

"Well, I will not force you to stay in the Order. You've given this a lot of thought?"

"I've thought of nothing else since he joined," Khyana replied firmly. "I am very sure that this is the best way for me, Professor. I'm sorry."

Dumbledore shook his head. "Do not be sorry for your decision, Khyana. I am sorry to see you go, but this has obviously been bothering you for a long time, and I will cause you no more discomfort. You may go, with my blessing. And good luck in your future endeavours."

"Thank you, Professor."

"And remember, Khyana. If you ever need me, I'm always here."

"Yes, sir. Thank you, Professor."

* * *

The next two weeks passed by fairly calmly. When asked why she had missed Tuesday's Order meeting, Khyana had replied that she hadn't been feeling well, and everyone let it go. She was glad, because she wasn't in the mood to be yelled at.

Kelria was glad to see that Sirius and Khyana were slowly making repairs to their relationship. They seemed to be getting along alright, and she had heard no further complaints from Khyana about her boyfriend, so she just left well enough alone.

At the next Order meeting, when Khyana again did not show up, people started to get a little worried.

"Where's Khyana?" Sirius asked Dumbledore.

Dumbledore looked a little confused. "She didn't tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

Dumbledore sighed. "Khyana has left the Order."

"WHAT?!" ten or eleven people cried from all over the room.

Sirius stood up and left, and no one called him back. However, when Kelria and a few others made to follow, Dumbledore told her to remain seated.

"Why? You let Sirius leave!" Kelria demanded.

"Yes, because I think Sirius might actually be able to do some good in this instance. However, Khyana only needs one person yelling at her right about now, I think. I also think that Sirius will be able to do the most good right now. So you may all speak to her about it tomorrow if you wish."

Those standing sat down again and Dumbledore continued with the meeting.

* * *

Sitting in the living room of her house attempting to figure out how to use a television (the newest addition to her ever-growing supply of muggle toys), Khyana was startled by a loud knock on her front door.

"It's open!" she yelled, not wanting to move.

The person opened the door, entered, and slammed the door loudly behind them.

"Someone's angry," Khyana commented, not even bothering to look up to see who her visitor was.

"Damn right I'm angry!" Sirius burst out furiously. "Why the hell did you quit the Order, Khyana Malfoy?"

Khyana shrugged. "I had my reasons."

"Well they better be damn good reasons!"

Khyana sighed and put down her owner's manual. "Yes, I'd say they were good."

"Well, what were they?"

Khyana shrugged again. "Well, for one thing, I can't work with Snape."

"What?! You're giving in? That's letting him win, you know. I don't like working with him, either-"

"No, Sirius. It's not that I don't _like_ working with him. It's that I physically _cannot_ work with him. I can't trust him, and nothing that Dumbledore says is going to change that. He can tell me fifty million times that Snape's changed and blah, blah, blah, but I'm not going to ever change how I feel about him. And I can't work with someone I can't trust. What if I'm assigned to work with him sometime? I have to know that I can trust him, and I can't."

Sirius nodded. "Okay. What's the second thing?"

"What?"

"You said, 'Well, for one thing', so what's the second thing?"

Khyana looked back at her owner's manual, playing with the corners. "Ican'tdomagic," she said quietly.

"What?"

"I can't do magic!" she exclaimed loudly.

"Well, yes, dear, I know that. That's why you take that potion, remember?"

Khyana gave him a scathing glare and said, "No. The potion's not working."

"What do you mean, the potion's not working?"

"The potion's not working! Do I have to spell it out for you?" she screamed, standing in a huff and going into the kitchen.

"I don't understand, Na," Sirius said, following her into the kitchen.

"Neither do I," Khyana answered. "It's just not working."

"But you've been apparating just fine…"

"That's all I can do. You realise, Sirius, that if I get stuck by myself with any amount of Death Eaters, I'm not going to be able to defend myself? That's the main reason I left the Order. If I can't do magic, I'm no good to the Order at all."

"There must be some explanation. Maybe Lily's making it wrong."

"Repeat that statement, Sirius."

"Maybe Lily's making it wrong?"

"How can you say that without realising how ridiculous it sounds? Lily doesn't make things wrong. It's not possible."

"Well then there has to be some other explanation. Maybe you've become immune to the potion."

"I doubt it, Sirius. I don't think it works like that."

"Well, there has to be some explanation!"

"Sirius, that's the third time you've said that! You're going to drive me bonkers soon!"

"Sorry. It just doesn't make sense!"

"I _know_ it doesn't make sense, Sirius! If it made sense, don't you think I'd have found a way to deal with it? Or asked Lily for help?"

Sirius still looked puzzled. "Okay. Well, we'll have to get to the bottom of this. Does Dumbledore have any ideas?"

Khyana shook her head. "Nope."

Sirius didn't look happy. This was not good…

* * *

The next day at work, Kelria, James and Frank all came over to demand in whispers why Khyana had quit the Order. She didn't feel like explaining it again and reliving the previous evening with Sirius, but she figured she probably didn't have a choice.

Sure enough, after she'd finished explaining, her three friends started to think of reasons why it might not be working. James shut Frank down quickly when he suggested that maybe Lily was making it wrong, and Frank shut Kelria down when she suggested Khyana might be immune to the potion.

"It just doesn't happen," Frank replied. "I've done a bit of research on it, and it just doesn't happen that way. People do not just become immune to this potion."

"Well, something's not adding up here," Kelria replied thoughtfully. "And I'm going to find out what it is."

* * *

In order to discover what it was that wasn't adding up with Khyana, Kelria had to go visit Leanne Thompson. She knew she had to be very careful because Leanne was answering to the Lestranges, and anything she said could put Khyana in danger.

"Hi, Kelria!" Leanne said cheerfully when she answered the door.

"Hi, Leanne, how are you?" Kelria asked, all her senses on alert.

"I'm good, how are you?"

"I'm pretty good. I have a question for you."

"Okay."

"Is there anything in Khyana's medicine that might stop working after a time?"

Leanne looked puzzled. "No. why, has it stopped working?"

Kelria nodded, very wary. Leanne's eyes lit up for a brief second, then quickly went back to normal.

"No, I can't think why that would be," she replied. "I'm sorry I couldn't be of more help."

"Yes, I'm sure you are," Kelria said sarcastically. "Look, Leanne, we all know you've been Imperiused, so you can stop acting like you haven't been. Why isn't Khyana's potion working?" she demanded.

Leanne looked affronted. "I don't know why her potion isn't working, Kelria. And if you're going to come in here and accuse me of things, you can just leave."

Kelria nodded decisively. "I think I'll do just that."

And she did.

* * *

Three days later, Alice found Leanne dead in her house, with a note written on the wall in blood:

If you don't want this to happen again, don't tell us when you know someone's been Imperiused.

* * *

**A/N:**_ So, Leanne's dead, Alice is devastated...and Christmas is coming! (I know, it's August...but CHRISTMAS IS COMING!)...(It's August in the story, not in real life...)_


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18: Christmas Parties **

December dawned cold and snowy. For Khyana's birthday, Sirius took her out for dinner and no one made a big deal, which made her happy. She didn't like a lot of attention brought to her birthday, unlike most of her other friends. The fact that she was getting older (even though she was only turning 21) was a touchy subject, given her illness, along with the fact that her potion had stopped working.

It had been five months since Leanne's death, and Dumbledore had six or seven herbologists working on why Khyana's potion wasn't working, but so far they had come up empty.

As Christmas approached, the last thing on the aurors' minds was vacation. They had it in mind to work every day possible during the school vacations. Bill Weasley was coming home from Hogwarts, and Molly was having a big Christmas party with the Potters, Kelria and Remus, Khyana and Sirius, Peter Pettigrew and the Longbottoms in attendance. The aurors, therefore, had to do at least one big thing, and no one was going to be able to work on Christmas day (except Sirius and Khyana, who had no family to spend it with). Lily had planned a big Christmas dinner for Christmas day for Sirius and Khyana, Kelria and Remus and the Longbottoms as well, so Sirius and Khyana didn't have to spend it alone. Although they appreciated the gesture, it just put more emphasis on the fact that they had no family.

* * *

The day of the Weasleys' party (Christmas Eve) was grey and depressing, and when Kelria woke up, she groaned and rolled over onto her stomach.

"It's grey out," she said aloud. "I'm not waking up."

"Yes, you are," a voice said from her doorway.

She sat bolt upright, to see a very sick-looking Khyana standing in her bedroom doorway.

"What's up, Yana?"

Khyana shrugged. "I dunno. You just need to get up."

Kelria raised her eyebrows. "You don't look so good, Yana."

"Really?" Khyana looked puzzled. "I feel okay. You just need to get out of bed. It's 2 o'clock."

"AM or PM?"

Khyana rolled her eyes. "PM, obviously."

"It's 2 00 PM?!?!?" Kelria cried. "Yana, why'd you let me sleep so long?!"

Khyana shrugged. "It's not my job to wake you up."

Kelria jumped out of bed and tore through her closet looking for something to wear.

"Chill, Kelria, the party's not until 7."

"I don't have anything to wear!" Kelria wailed.

Khyana rolled her eyes again. "You sound like me during our auror exams."

"That was annoying."

"And so are you. So stop whining. You have lots of stuff to wear, you just want an excuse to go shopping."

"Yeah…" Kelria agreed. "What's your point?"

Khyana shook her head. "You don't have to go shopping every time you have to go to a party."

"_I_ do!" Kelria argued.

"No," Khyana said firmly, walking over to the closet. "Look, you have a million things in here you've never even worn!"

Kelria pouted, but Khyana would have none of it.

"It's not a fancy party, Kel! You can just wear normal everyday robes."

Kelria smirked. "Are you going in black, then?"

Khyana glared at her. "You're so funny, Kelria. I just might do that."

Kelria grinned. "Okay."

* * *

The party, Kelria later reflected, wasn't that great. Mostly it was just Bill talking about Hogwarts, and Sirius, James, Remus, Peter and Frank reliving their Hogwarts days to him. The women just sat in the kitchen and talked and played with the babies.

* * *

Christmas morning dawned sunny, and Kelria smiled as she rolled out of bed at 10 30, looking forward to spending the day with her friends.

Lily had told everyone to be at her house for 11 30, so Kelria hurriedly showered, dressed, and ripped open the presents under her tree. It was a fairly small pile, since her mother had passed away the year before. There were a couple gifts from Remus, and one each from Khyana and Sirius, Lily and James, Alice and Frank, each member of her squad, and the Weasleys.

When she arrived at the Potters', she was surprised to discover that she was not the last one to arrive.

"It's Sirius and Khyana. Obviously they're going to be late," Lily said, sighing.

Everyone agreed, and the door burst open, admitting the two aforementioned late-comers.

"Well, well, well!" James said teasingly. "Look who decided to show up!"

"Shut up, Prongs," Sirius muttered. "Khyana wasn't feeling well this morning."

"Why?" Lily asked, concerned. "What's wrong, Na?"

Khyana, still looking like death warmed over, shrugged. "I dunno. Nothing too bad. I'm fine. Sirius made a big deal of nothing, trust me."

No one really believed her, since she still looked very ill, but no one said anything more about it, either, knowing they would all be hexed into next week if they did.

"Let's eat!" James said suddenly, and everyone made their way into the dinning room for the food.

Khyana barely touched her food, only eating a tiny bit of turkey and nothing else.

"Khyana, why aren't you eating anything?" Alice demanded worriedly.

Khyana shrugged. "I'm not hungry."

Everyone else at the table exchanged looks. Khyana Malfoy, turning down a free meal? It was a very rare occurrence that generated more than a little worry from her friends.

"No potatoes?" Lily asked, trying to entice her. Khyana loved potatoes.

Khyana shook her head. "I'm allergic."

"What?! Since when?"

"Last week," Khyana replied.

"How did you find this out?"

"Went to a herbologist," Khyana replied.

"So is that part of the reason your potion's not working?" Kelria asked eagerly.

Khyana shook her head. "That's what I thought at first too, but she said no, that has nothing to do with it."

Everyone fell into a contemplative silence, and Khyana continued to pick at her turkey.

For the next few hours, everyone talked and laughed and reminisced about their Hogwarts days (which is pretty much what they did every time they all got together), except Khyana was strangely silent, which made more than a couple people extremely uncomfortable, until finally Sirius announced that they really needed to be going. There was a collective sigh of relief around the room, after which no one would look at each other for shame.

"I'm sad that I'm sorry she's gone," Kelria said quietly once Sirius and Khyana had left the house, "But it was just creepy having her sit there looking like Death and not saying anything."

Everyone nodded and murmured their agreement.

"I think she should definitely go see a Healer," Lily said, bouncing the baby on her lap.

"For sure," her husband agreed. "I've talked to Sirius about it, but he says she won't hear of it. She's absolutely convinced nothing's wrong."

Lily and Alice shook their heads.

"She needs to see someone," Alice said firmly.

"Yeah, but she won't if she doesn't think anything's wrong," Remus said.

"So then maybe she needs to be convinced something _is_ wrong," Frank said.

If Frank had known in what way his words would come true, possibly he wouldn't have said them…

* * *

**A/N**: _Yes, I am the Cliff-Hanger Queen. So sue me. Haha. Anyway, sorry the update took so long...I had like four pages and then I decided I didn't like it, so I totally had to start over. And I've been super busy lately. Hopefully the next one will be up sooner. R&R people!_


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19: Frank's Words Come True**

About two o'clock in the morning, Kelria was awoken by the phone ringing beside her head. She reached for it groggily, and nearly dropped it.

"Hello?"

"Kel…it's Yana…"

Kelria sat up a little straighter. Khyana sounded like she was having trouble breathing. "Yana? Are you okay?"

There was a bit of a pause, and then Khyana's breathless, "No."

"I'm coming over," Kelria said, standing up and grabbing her robes. "Just hang on."

"Sirius…"

"I'll get Remus and Sirius, Yana. You just stay there."

The line went dead, and Kelria pulled on her robes without bothering to take off her pyjamas, and apparated over to Remus'. She didn't bother with the courtesy of appearing blocks away; she didn't have time.

"Remus!" She shouted, appearing in his front hall and bounding up the stairs. "REMUS!"

When she reached his bedroom, he had leapt out of bed and was looking around, wide-eyed.

"Kel? What's wrong?"

"It's Khyana," Kelria said breathlessly. "She just called me, she sounded like she's having trouble breathing. We have to get Sirius and get over there and get her to St. Mungo's."

Remus was already pulling on his bathrobe and nodding. "I'll get Sirius, you get Yana and get her to the hospital, okay?"

Kelria nodded and apparated once more, this time straight into Khyana's kitchen; that's where the phone was, so that's where she assumed Khyana would be, too.

She was not wrong, and she found Khyana crumpled in a heap on the linoleum floor.

"Khyana!" Kelria shook her friend, but Khyana did not wake up. Kelria grabbed her hand and did a side-along apparition with her to St. Mungo's.

Sirius and Remus were waiting in the waiting room for the two girls, and Sirius looked like a sheet.

"I _told_ her she should have come in earlier!" he said furiously. For all his fury, however, he was very gentle when he lifted his girlfriend from the floor and took her to the front desk.

"Can I help you?" the welcome witch asked boredly, not looking up from her magazine.

"My girlfriend's unconscious," he said firmly.

She briefly glanced up at him, sighed and popped a bubble with her gum. Then she reached lethargically for a piece of parchment behind the desk, and a quill and inkpot.

"Fill out this form for her, and then we'll admit her," she said in the same bored voice.

Sirius motioned with his head for Kelria to grab the parchment, and she did so.

They went to the chair area, and Sirius laid Khyana down on the chair. Then the three of them started working on the form, under the watchful eye of a healer who had entered the room. Apparently, she had been buzzed by the welcome witch, because she was looking Khyana over pretty carefully.

"Name? Well, that's easy enough. Khyana Malfoy," Sirius said, writing it down.

"Excuse me, sir. We need her full name. Including middle names," the healer said.

"Well, Khyana _is_ her middle name, so that solves that problem," Sirius replied. "Next question."

"Oh, come on, Sirius, don't be stupid," Kelria snapped, snatching the paper from his hand. "Sara Khyana Alayan Malfoy," she wrote quickly. "Age? She's 21 now, I think. Yes, she did have a birthday, even if we didn't acknowledge it."

"Hey! I acknowledged it! I took her out for dinner!" Sirius cried.

Remus sighed. "Okay, you two. Let's get going on this."

"Moony's right. Okay. Address. 89 North High Street, London. Occupation? Um…well, is she considered an auror, Kelria?"

"Yes," Kelria snapped. "Of course."

"Okay, okay! I just didn't know if she'd received her confirmation or not…"

"Sirius, it's December. She received her confirmation at the end of August."

"Well, no one told _me_ that!"

"I shouldn't be surprised if I were you," Kelria muttered under her breath.

"Alright, you two. Cut it out. Kelria, what's her auror number?"

"81," Kelria replied.

Sirius and Remus gaped at her. "She's been an auror for 4 months and she's already number 81?"

Kelria shrugged. "She's really good. James is number 75."

"What are you?" Remus asked, curious.

"83," Kelria replied. "Emily-Hope is the only one separating us."

"How many aurors are there?" Sirius asked.

Kelria shrugged. "Maybe 250."

Sirius and Remus beamed.

"250 aurors, and our girlfriends are numbers 81 and 83, Moony," Sirius bragged. "We should be proud."

"We can be proud when Khyana gets out of here," Remus replied.

"Good point," Sirius agreed. "What's the next question?"

"Abnormal medical history. Well, I guess her Mora Menda would go here, eh?" Remus said.

"No, sir," the healer said. "That would go under the "rare hereditary diseases" section on page three."

"Page _three_?!" Sirius exclaimed.

The healer nodded. "Yes, sir."

Sirius angrily flipped through five pages of very tiny print before glaring at the healer.

"Are you kidding me?" he asked furiously. "We don't have time to fill this all out; Khyana needs to be looked at _now_!"

The healer shrugged. "I'm very sorry, sir, but the whole form needs to be filled out before we can admit a patient."

Remus, writing very quickly and not very neatly, had hurriedly filled out the rest of the first page and all of the second.

"Here, Sirius, we only have three pages to go," he said, trying to calm down his friend.

Sirius muttered darkly under his breath about the incompetence of some hospital staff, but the three of them managed to get the form filled out quickly.

"Is that good enough?" Sirius demanded of the healer, shoving the form under her nose.

"Sirius, behave," Kelria hissed.

"Yes, it's fine, thank you. Your girlfriend will be well looked after, Mr. Black. You can come and visit her in two days, if she's recovering properly."

"What are you going to do to her?" Sirius demanded.

The healer shot a look at the still unconscious Khyana. "We'll have to look at her and find out exactly what's wrong, and then we'll let you know."

"Thank you," Remus said, grabbing Sirius' shoulders and steering him out of the hospital, followed closely by Kelria.

"I'm sure Khyana will be fine, Sirius," Kelria said.

Sirius shook his head. "She'll kill me. She hates the hospital."

"Well, we didn't really have a choice, did we?" Remus pointed out. "She passed out and could barely breathe. What were we supposed to do, leave her on her kitchen floor?"

Sirius shook his head again. "I should have made her go earlier."

"Stop it, Padfoot," Remus said sternly. "If you're going to be like that, just shut up."

Both Kelria and Sirius looked at Remus in shock.

"Wow, Remus," Kelria said admiringly.

Suddenly Sirius reached into his pocket and pulled out a ring box.

"What's that?" Remus asked immediately.

"A ring."

"For…?"

"Khyana."

Kelria and Remus both gaped at him.

"You're actually going to ask her to marry you?"

Sirius glared at Kelria. "You don't have to sound so surprised."

"I _am_ surprised! Sirius Black, Mr. No Commitment, is actually going to ask a girl to be his wife?"

"Yeah, I am," Sirius replied defensively. "And if you have a problem with that…well, that's too bad."

"I don't have a problem with it. I'm just surprised, is all. Khyana didn't think you'd ever do it."

"I know. I kind of blew it with the whole dinner thing in the summer…so I gave her some time to get over that."

Kelria gaped at him. "That was five _months_ ago!"

Sirius shrugged. "She needs time."

Kelria shook her head sadly. "I will _never_ understand men."

* * *

**A/N**:_ I know, it's been a while...but I was away and then I had two essays to write...and it's kind of short, and I don't know what I'm going to do for the next chapter yet, and I'm going to be busy again in the next little while, so you'll just have to be patient with me, okay? And R&R, please!_


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20: France**

Sirius stopped by the next day to see Khyana with Kelria, but they weren't allowed to see her.

"She is awake, but we haven't figured out what's wrong with her at the moment," the healer at the door said. "Does she always ask this many questions?"

Kelria laughed. "Yes, she does. She drove our teachers crazy at Auror School with all her questions."

The healer nodded. "She's worn out three of our healers so far. She's working on a fourth."

Sirius laughed. "And that's why we can't see her? Because she's wearing out your healers?"

The healer shook her head. "No. we haven't figured out what's wrong with her yet. They're not used to being asked the questions; they usually ask them."

Kelria smiled. "Well, Na asks a lot of questions."

The healer nodded. "We'll contact you when she can have visitors."

Kelria nodded and steered Sirius out of the hospital.

"Come on, Sirius, let's go see the Potters."

"Don't wanna."

"No choice. Let's go."

* * *

Kelria was not looking forward to going back to work without Khyana. The healers had figured out what was wrong with her: her Mora Menda was being very aggressive, and was trying to kill her. It happened because she tried to do too many complex spells as an auror.

She and Sirius had been allowed in three days after Christmas to see her, and she had still looked like death warmed over…but barely warmed over.

"Merlin and Salazar, Kelria, you don't need to look so depressed," Khyana had laughed. "I'm not going to die."

Kelria couldn't lose the frown however, and even the ever jovial Sirius was having trouble being upbeat in light of her situation. Kelria had given the two a moment alone together before she and Sirius left the hospital, and Sirius had looked very grim, but wouldn't say what they'd talked about.

When Kelria reached the office the day before New Year's Eve, there was a huge pile of paperwork waiting for her.

The day passed slowly, and Kelria left early to go visit Khyana.

When she reached the hospital, however, she found, to her surprise, Khyana's room empty, the bed made neatly. She stopped a healer in the hallway and asked about Khyana.

"Miss Malfoy has been released," the healer replied. "She is healthy again, and has been given a new potion to take to control her Mora Menda."

Kelria gave an exasperated sigh, turned on the spot and apparated to Khyana's house, not bothering to apparate blocks away.

"Sara!"

"Do _not_ call me that, Kelria," Khyana said, absolutely furious as she stepped out of the living room. "My name is Khyana. Sara's dead."

Kelria's heart sank as she remembered that Sara and Khyana had grown up together, been best friends forever…and it had been Khyana's brother who had killed Sara. And the anniversary of Sara's death was the night Khyana had passed out.

"What's that?" Kelria asked, pointing to a large teddy bear on Khyana's couch.

"A teddy bear?" Khyana replied.

"Where'd you get it?"

"Sirius got it for me."

"Why?"

"Because I asked him to! Why are you asking so many questions?"

"You just don't seem like the teddy bear type to me, is all."

Khyana shrugged. "I never had one growing up, so I wanted one when I was in the hospital. Sirius got it for me."

"That was sweet of him."

"I know."

* * *

Khyana had been out of the hospital for about a week when Sirius showed up at her door with a large bouquet of flowers.

"Good evening, beautiful. How are you feeling?"

Khyana smiled. "I'm alright, how are you?"

"I'm good. You up for dinner?"

Khyana accepted the flowers. "Sure. Just give me a sec."

"Sure," Sirius agreed. "I'll put those flowers in some water for you."

"Alright."

Khyana raced upstairs and changed her clothes, using her wand to put her hair in an intricate updo.

When she returned to the main floor five minutes later, Sirius was waiting near the door.

"Wow," he said.

Khyana hit him lightly. "Don't make me blush, Sirius."

"Do I know this dress from somewhere?"

Khyana nodded. "It's the dress I wore at the Christmas party at the Thompsons' the day Sara died."

Sirius nodded. "I remember that."

"I think everyone remembers that."

"Probably," Sirius acceded.

"So, where are we going for dinner?"

Sirius shrugged. "I thought we'd go to the North Inn."

"Okay."

* * *

After dinner, Sirius took her for a walk down by the Thames River.

"Wow, Sirius, this is romantic," she said teasingly. "All that pollution in the river…gorgeous!"

Sirius rolled his eyes and laughed. "Yes, well, we don't have a beach in London, so it was the best I could do."

"You know what I feel like tonight?"

"What?"

"Paris."

"You want to go to Paris?"

"Yeah."

Sirius looked doubtful. "Don't you have to have papers and stuff for that?"

Khyana gaped. "What's this? Sirius Black doesn't want to take a risk?!"

Sirius shrugged. "I just don't want to pay a fine. And I don't think you're strong enough yet."

"You're a chicken, Sirius."

"Shut up, let's go. But we're doing a side-along apparition, I don't want you to collapse on me again."

Khyana sighted, and the two spun on the spot and disapparated together.

When they reappeared in Paris, France, the view was breathtaking.

"This is beautiful," Khyana breathed, and Sirius nodded his agreement.

They walked for a while near the Eiffel Tower, and finally ended up right beneath it, Khyana straining her neck to try to see to the top.

"Wow, this thing is MASSIVE!" she exclaimed, and Sirius nodded, looking distracted.

"Hey, Yana, can I ask you something?"

"Sure, Sirius," she replied, still looking up the center of the tower.

"How long have we been dating now?"

Khyana looked at him, puzzled, and shrugged. "I don't know…we started dating in seventh year, at my birthday party, right?"

"Well, not technically…" Sirius replied, his grin mischievous.

Khyana rolled her eyes. "Okay, so what, like the day after my birthday party?"

"Sure."

"So I had just turned seventeen…and now I'm 21…so I'll go with four years."

"Alright. So we've been dating for four years. I'm tired of dating."

Khyana's head turned round so quickly Sirius heard her neck snap. "What?"

He realised he must have given her the wrong impression, and quickly explained.

"I'm not breaking up with you! I was wondering…um…Khyana?"

"What?"

Suddenly Sirius was down on one knee, a large diamond ring in his hand.

"Will you marry me?"

Khyana laughed. "Of _course_ I will, Sirius!"

"Really?"

Khyana laughed harder. "Did you expect me to say no?"

"No, no, of course not…only…wow."

It started to snow lightly, but neither of them noticed as they walked through the streets hand in hand, Khyana's ring glittering under the street lamps.

Finally Khyana could barely keep her eyes open, and they apparated back to her house, where they reluctantly parted, with promises to call each other the next day, and they agreed not to tell anyone else yet.

"We'll tell them eventually," Sirius murmured against Khyana's hair as he held her, "But for now it'll just be our little secret."

* * *

**A/N: **_AWE! Sirius and Yana are engaged (finally!)! I know it sounds a lot like Remus' proposal to Kel, but I actuallly wrote this one first, then decided that Sirius would be the _last_ person to propose, because of his commitment issues...and then I just wasn't creative enough to come up with something new for Kel and Remus (Sorry, Kel!) Anyway, there you go. I think I'm skipping a couple more months after this, and then things with the case will really pick up..._


	21. Chapter 21

**Disclaimer:**_ Lightfingers is a name I borrowed from author Tamora Pierce…Just so's y'all know!_

* * *

**Chapter 21: Lightfingers**

Khyana huddled under her umbrella, shivering. She hated rain.

"Morning, Malfoy!"

"Hi," Khyana replied sullenly. It was _not_ a good morning. And she was really going to have to do something about that name…

When she got to her cubicle, there was a letter waiting on her desk. It had Cam's department's insignia on it. She opened it quickly and read it. She smiled.

"KELRIA!"

"KHYANA!"

"I'm going to see Cam!"

"Okay!"

Khyana hurried down the hall to Cam's office, clutching the message from him to her chest.

When she reached the office, she knocked and entered, then stopped.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realise you had company," she said, backing up.

"No, no, Yana, come in, come in!" Cam exclaimed, standing and gesturing that she should sit. "This is Lightfingers, Khyana, he's the informant I told you about."

"Miss Malfoy."

"Uh…hi."

The tall man standing in the center of Cam's office made Khyana uncomfortable. Maybe it was because he looked about 6'8" and she was only 5'2", or maybe it was because he looked enough like Kennedy to be his brother. Whatever it was, it made her take a step back.

"Lightfingers has some information for you about the Lestranges," Cam said, standing. "I'll leave you two."

Cam left the room (even though it was his office), and Lightfingers turned to Khyana. Khyana felt even more awkward being alone in the office with this man, and she instinctively checked all the exits.

"You're tracking the Lestranges?" Lightfingers' voice was very deep, and it resonated in the small space. Khyana got shivers.

She scowled. "Attempting to, yes."

"When was the last time you had information about them?"

Khyana shrugged. "Before Christmas. So I guess about five months."

Lightfingers nodded and pulled an envelope out of his pocket.

"What's this?" Khyana asked, accepting it.

"The Lestranges' plans for the next two days," Lightfingers replied. He looked uncomfortable, and then pulled another envelope out of his pocket.

"And this?"

"Just a suspicion."

Khyana blinked and the informant was gone, leaving her holding two white envelopes, not sure which was which.

* * *

When she returned to her cubicle, she opened the one she thought was the Lestranges' movements, and was not disappointed. She put the other one off to the side and went to find Emily-Hope to talk about the information she had just been given.

"JEFFRIES!"

"MALFOY!"

Khyana hurried over to Emily-Hope's cubicle and leaned on the wall.

"Hey."

Emily-Hope didn't look up from her paperwork. "Hey."

"I have some info on the Lestranges."

"Kay, give me a sec."

"Kay."

Khyana leaned on the wall for another second before deciding it might fall over if she continued to do so, and standing up straight. Emily-Hope finished her sentence with a flourish and gave Khyana her attention.

"Alright, Malfoy, shoot."

Khyana handed Emily-Hope the letter she had just received from Lightfingers, and Emily-Hope's face lit up. She looked up at Khyana.

"Let's go find some Death Eaters."

* * *

Kelria was feeling ditched. James had taken the day off, having worked the past month with no weekends and being forced by his wife and his team, Khyana was off with Emily-Hope chasing Lestranges, and everyone else seemed to have ditched the office in favour of the warmer-than-usual April weather.

She sighed and put her head down on her desk. She would just take a little afternoon nap…

_The long corridor was familiar to her, but she hadn't been here in a long time. Four years, in fact. Where was she…?_

_With a start, she remembered. This was where Voldemort gave his Death Eaters their assignments…_

_At the end of the corridor was a door, which was open. She walked slowly and carefully through it, careful not to make any noise, not that it mattered. Voldemort would know she was there whether she made noise or not._

"_Lestrange."_

_Her ears perked up. Khyana needed information on Lestrange…_

"_Master."_

_Okay, it was Rodolphus. Excellent. Get the head._

"_I have an assignment for you."_

_She stifled her snigger. Obviously._

"_Yes, Master?"_

"_The Malfoy girl is becoming a nuisance again. Kill her."_

"_I thought that was Malfoy's assignment, Master."_

_A hiss. "Yes, well, it would appear that Malfoy is incompetent when it comes to these matters. I want you to do it."_

_Lestrange sounded thrilled when he replied. "Yes, Master. I won't let you down."_

"_You better not. You know what will happen if you do."_

"_Yes, Master."_

Kelria woke with a start, and found she could remember everything that had gone on in the dream. It was a big change from the last time, when she and Khyana had spent months trying to figure out what was going on.

"Lestrange is going to kill Khyana," Kelria whispered.

She immediately shot out of her seat and went to find her friend, not sure where to start and not caring. Khyana was in danger, and she, Kelria, was going to save her.

* * *

**A/N:**_ DUNH DUNH DUNH! Kelria's playing the hero in this one haha. I promise it's going to get a lot better within the next couple months of the story...And Shannon, LEARN HOW TO SPELL! And spell check your reviews before you post them! Or look in my chapter! It's "PROposal", not "PERposal"! Gosh, child!_


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22: Just a Suspicion **

Khyana and Kelria had had many discussions about these dreams when they had appeared in their seventh and final year at Hogwarts. Neither one was looking forward to having them again.

They were sitting in the ever-popular Marty's Diner and they were having a deep discussion about them, yet again.

"So you said you were just having a catnap…huh. I haven't had any yet," Khyana commented, dragging her onion ring through the sauce.

"I haven't had any since," Kelria agreed, taking a bite of her salad.

"Why do you always get a salad here?" Khyana asked suddenly.

"What? That was pretty random."

"I'm just curious."

"Why do you always get onion rings?"

"Because I'm allergic to potatoes and I can't have the fries."

Kelria sniggered. "Oh yeah."

"So how come you always get the salad? You don't have any allergies to use as an excuse."

Kelria shrugged. "I don't know. It's good and it's healthy."

"Pfft! If I wanted healthy, I'd stay home! I come to Marty's to put on some fat! And you could certainly do with putting on some fat."

Kelria laughed. "We're getting married, darling! We have to keep our figures to fit into our dresses!"

"I don't," Khyana replied, smirking. "I don't have my dress yet."

"Why are we talking about this and not the dreams?"

"Because Jonathan and Julie just walked by like five times."

"Oh."

"Gosh, Kelria! That's why _you're_ auror 83 and I'm auror 81. I pay attention to what's going on around me."

Kelria laughed. "Whatever you say, Khyana."

Khyana grinned and stuck another onion ring in her mouth.

"So, back on topic…You haven't had any other dreams?"

Kelria shook her head. "Nope."

"Hm. So, why does Sara, who's been dead and quiet for four years, all of a sudden show up in your dreams again?"

Kelria took a drink of water. "I don't know that it's necessarily Sara."

Khyana was puzzled. "What do you mean?"

"I didn't actually see Sara in the dream. It could be someone else."

Khyana raised an eyebrow. "How many other people do we both know who are dead and could be doing this?"

Kelria shrugged. "Who says it's someone we both know?"

Khyana sniggered. "Okay, let me get this straight. Someone who is dead has come back, taken up Sara's mission to save us from the Death Eaters. They appear _only to you_, but only once, and they show you a meeting between Lestrange and Voldemort so you can save _my_ hide. But they don't know me. Or you."

Kelria blushed. "When you put it that way…"

Khyana shrugged. "That's why, my friend, _I_ am auror 81."

* * *

Kelria slammed her door, very loudly. It didn't abate her anger, however. 

"Stupid…number 81 my butt…and she claims she's not a Malfoy."

The mutters kept on as they came to her head. Khyana had certainly shown her Malfoy background with her little comment about why it couldn't be someone who didn't know both of them. And she kept going on and on about how she was auror number 81 and Kelria was only 83…

"Stupid…some friend…"

* * *

April and May passed in a haze, and very quickly it was summer. Khyana and Emily-Hope were still trying to track down the Lestranges, and Kelria was having no luck at all with finding the Malfoys at anything illegal. And on top of trying to find their respective Death Eaters, both girls were busy trying to plan a double wedding, with much meddling from the Potters and Longbottoms. 

On this particular Saturday late in June, the two brides-to-be were to be found once again at Marty's Diner, both eating salads this time.

"I knew you'd come around to my way of thinking," Kelria teased.

Khyana shrugged and made a face. "The burger and rings are still better. And as soon as I don't ever have to fit into that dress again, that's the first thing I'm going to eat."

Kelria laughed. "Good luck with that. I think Sirius will want to take you somewhere more romantic."

Khyana made a face. "Well, he'll just have to deal with it then."

Kelria laughed and returned her attention to the fabric swatches set out on the table around their food.

"I like this one," she said, pointing to a cream and gold swatch.

Khyana nodded. "It's pretty. Whatever you like, Kel."

Kelria frowned. "It's your wedding too, Khyana."

Khyana shrugged and changed the subject. "Remus is still okay getting married on Hallowe'en?"

Kelria shrugged. "He hasn't said anything different. And he wouldn't be able to keep it from me if he had a problem with it."

Khyana nodded. "How's the search coming?"

Kelria scowled. "You Malfoys are all the same. If you don't want to be found, you're good at hiding."

Khyana nodded. "I know."

Kelria gaped. She had been expecting a flare-up about how Khyana _wasn't_ a Malfoy…

Khyana shrugged. "You owed me."

* * *

July came and brought the hot weather with it. Khyana could be found on any given day wearing robes she had worn a few years ago when she was shorter. Everyone made fun of her, but she just shrugged and replied, "I'm not boiling." 

Kelria also made fun of Khyana for another reason. Her desk was an absolute disaster.

"Oh shut up, Kelria, no one cares. No one else has to deal with it, just me. And I can handle it."

Kelria shook her head. "The rest of us are tired of waiting for you to dig through all your crap to find whatever we're asking you for. _Everyone_ has to deal with it, Khyana, not just you."

Khyana smirked. "Alright, alright! I'll clean it up."

"When?"

Khyana shrugged. "Someday."

"Soon."

"Maybe."

* * *

The night Khyana had that conversation with Kelria, she found herself sitting in her cubicle into the wee hours of the morning, trying to figure out some information from her latest informant. 

"This is going nowhere," she muttered, then looked at the clutter that was the top of her desk. "I'm going to take a break."

If anyone had told Khyana a month ago that on her break she'd be cleaning up her cubicle, she would have laughed in their faces. But she didn't have anything else to do; all her friends were on Order assignments tonight.

She started moving files around, putting them in filing cabinets and neat piles around to be put away somewhere later. She had been working for about two hours and was nearly completed when she came across a white envelope. Curious, she opened it, remembering what had been said when she had received it.

"_What's this?" she asked._

"_Just a suspicion," Lightfingers replied._

_Just a suspicion…_Khyana opened the envelope, very wary and worried about what she would find. How could she have forgotten about this envelope?

She pulled the parchment from the envelope carefully, and opened it even slower. As she read the one line typed onto the page, her naturally pale face paled even more. Her friends were all in danger.

* * *

**A/N:**_ DUNH DUNH DUNH! This is a cliffhanger just for Kel, cuz I know how much she _loves_ them! Don't you Kel! Haha. I love you sis. I can't wait for you to do my hair tomorrow, and then we're going SHOPPING! WOOT! And Shannon, you spelled "wrong" wrong in your last review..._


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23: Missing**

Khyana hurriedly tucked the paper into the pocket of her too-short robes and left the Ministry. It was raining when she got outside, and she shivered. Rain was a bad omen for those on Order assignments tonight.

She quickly spun on the spot, deciding in a split second where she was going to go first. She needed to find her fiancé.

When she reached the house, the light was on in the front room. Finally, something she could hold onto, some hope.

She pounded on the door, and Sirius answered it quickly.

"Yana, hey!" Sirius smiled, then noticed her face. "What's wrong?" he asked quickly.

Khyana shouldered past him into the house to get out of the rain.

"Khyana, what's wrong?" Sirius asked again, more forcibly, as he closed the door.

"Are you okay?"

"I-wha…yeah, I'm fine. Why?"

"If you're okay, I need you to come with me. I have to find everyone else who was on Order assignments tonight."

Sirius looked completely baffled. "Why?"

Khyana pulled out the piece of parchment from her pocket and handed it to him. He accepted it, giving her a strange look, then glancing down to read it quickly. His lips pursed.

"Let's go."

* * *

The two tracked down all their friends who had been on Order assignments safely, and gathered back at Sirius' place for a discussion.

"Shouldn't this be discussed at an Order meeting?" James asked.

Sirius shook his head. "Khyana's not in the Order anymore, remember? And she's the one who discovered this, so we need to include her."

Hestia Jones pursed her lips. "I think Dumbledore should be here."

"Hang on a sec," Remus said, looking around. "Where's Kelria?"

Khyana blanched. How could she have forgotten about Kelria?

"Just stay here a second, I'll be back," Khyana whispered, and spun on the spot to Kelria's. All the windows in her friend's house were black.

She walked up to the door and pounded loudly. "KELRIA!"

There was not reply.

"KELRIA!" she screamed again, getting extremely worried.

She pounded on the door with both her fists until strong arms caught her from behind. She struggled, but the person behind her was stronger.

"Relax, Khyana, I'm not going to hurt you," Remus said, sounding grim. "She's not here, is she?"

Khyana allowed her best friend's fiancé and fiancé's best friend to hold her tightly until her shaking subsided.

"You scared me, Remus. I thought you were a Death Eater."

Remus nodded. "I'm sorry, I didn't know. What was that letter about that got you all fired up with worry? Sirius is probably telling everyone else right now. He wanted to come with me, but I convinced him that someone needed to stay with the others and explain. You're auror number 81, after all. You can look after yourself."

Khyana smiled briefly. "I got the letter back in April. Maybe I should explain all this to Sirius. He deserves to hear it, too."

Remus nodded. "Let's go back, then. We can look for Kel later. Maybe she's just not back from her assignment yet."

"Maybe," Khyana agreed doubtfully.

The two spun on the spot back to Sirius', where the group of remaining Order members looked grim.

"She wasn't there?" Sirius asked, worried.

Khyana shook her head, then went to stand beside Sirius.

"I suppose you're all wondering why it is you're here," she began.

Everyone nodded and gave her their full attention. She took a deep breath and began her story at the beginning.

"Back in April, I walked into work one day and there was a letter lying on my desk. It was from a person in the Ministry whom I had frequently used as an informant in the past, saying that they had some information for me." She turned to Sirius. "I should have told you this a long time ago, and James has been threatening to tell you for almost a year, but I thought you might overreact. The informant in the Ministry that I've been using, he does research for the auror department, and a lot of different aurors use his information. He's just an informant."

"Who?"

"Cam."

Sirius gaped. "Cam _Jones_?"

Khyana nodded. "He's just an informant, Sirius."

"And a Death Eater, Khyana!"

Everyone in the room gasped, and Khyana turned to them, nodding.

"You see this piece of paper Sirius is holding? It was given to me in April by a man Cam often uses as an informant. When I asked him what it was, he told me it was "just a suspicion"." She grabbed the paper from Sirius and held it up to read. "It says, 'Beware Cam Jones and Laura Masters. They are suspected of Death Eater activity. Be careful on July 5th'." Khyana shot a glance at Remus, who looked stunned. "Laura and Cam both work in the ministry, in different departments that do research of Death Eater activity. They're perfectly placed. Voldemort is not stupid."

"Is that why you were so worried tonight?" James asked. "Today's the 5th."

"Well, technically, today is the 6th, since it's like 5 am…"

Everyone shot Sirius contemptuous looks.

"What?"

"We don't care about technicalities, Sirius," Khyana said quietly. "The point is, Kelria went on an Order assignment on the 5th and she's not back yet. and if she's really missing, it's my fault."

"No, it's not," Remus said firmly.

"Yes, it is," Khyana countered, turning and glaring at him. "I didn't find the note in time. It's my fault."

Remus shook his head, exasperated. "I give up."

"Good."

* * *

Kelria woke with a start. She had had another dream, but this one was not about Khyana…it was about herself. She had been kidnapped by Death Eaters (who knew Cam Jones was a Death Eater anyway??), and taken to a castle somewhere deep in a forest in northern Scotland. She had been thrown in a dungeon and…hang on.

She sat bolt upright, looking around at the stone walls and stone floor. This was not her house…

"It wasn't a dream," she whispered, standing. "I've really been kidnapped."

"Very good, Miss Song."

Kelria spun around. "You."

Lucius chuckled. "Me. Who were you expecting?"

Kelria shrugged. "I don't know."

"Well, I'm here. And I have total control over what happens to you, Miss Song. So you better keep me happy."

Kelria sniggered. "Whatever, Malfoy."

Lucius paled further in his rage. "You listen here and you listen well, girl. You do what I say and answer all my questions, and maybe we'll let you go."

Kelria burst out laughing. "What_ever_, Malfoy! You wouldn't let me go. Your life depends on it! If you let me go, your master would kill you. He's already right pissed at you for not killing Khyana before now. You won't let me go."

Lucius didn't deny it, and Kelria smirked. "I knew it. You're so predictable, Malfoy."

Lucius hit her across the face, and she fell to the floor again, knocked out cold.

* * *

Khyana was becoming frantic. The group had alerted Dumbledore to Kelria's absence, but he had so far been unable to do anything. He had allowed Khyana to help because she felt responsible, even though she wasn't a member of the Order.

A search effort had been organised, but so far nothing had been turned up, and Khyana was getting frantic. Only Sirius and Remus' comments about Kelria being able to look out for herself kept her from leaving them and going to search herself. The best plan she had at the moment was to get a dream later on about Kelria's whereabouts, but she wasn't counting on it. Sara didn't take demands.

* * *

**A/N:**_ I know, they've been short lately...I'm sorry, but I run out of ideas quickly._


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24: ****A Dream and a Flashback**

Sirius had finally talked his fiancée into getting some sleep, hoping that maybe she would have one of those dreams and be able to help them find Kelria. Remus was pacing in Sirius' living room, looking haggard, and there was nothing Sirius could say to him to make him stop.

"Moony, you're wearing a hole in my carpet."

Remus glared at him and Sirius sighed. "Pacing isn't going to bring Kelria back any sooner, Remus."

"You're right," Remus agreed. "I'm going out."

"What? No, Moony-!"

"I'll see you in a bit, Padfoot."

Remus left the house and Sirius sighed. People were coming and going from his house, which had been set up as a headquarters for the search effort.

Shortly after Remus left, Khyana entered the living room, wrapped in a blanket, and sat down on the couch beside Sirius.

"Hey, beautiful."

"Hi."

Sirius was shocked at the change in his fiancée in the past few hours. She really felt responsible for Kelria's disappearance, and it was taking its toll.

"How are you?" Sirius asked, putting his arm around her shoulders and pulling her closer to him.

She snuggled against his shoulder and shrugged. "Not too good."

Sirius sighed and kissed the top of her head. "Remus has gone to look for Kelria."

"He won't find her."

Sirius looked at her, surprised. "What do you mean?"

Khyana shrugged again. "I had a dream."

"Did you?" Sirius asked, smiling.

Khyana nodded. "Kelria's in a castle."

"Where?"

"I don't know."

"Is it yours?"

Khyana stiffened. "I don't have one."

"Is it the Malfoy Estate?" Sirius corrected.

Khyana shook her head. "No."

"You're sure?"

"Yes."

"Okay."

"I remembered something else."

"What's that?"

"Back when we first got our assignments, last June, Andi told me that Bellatrix was meeting with two people, a brunette woman and dirty blonde-haired man, but she thought he died his hair, and they were about our age. She was talking about Cam and Laura, and I didn't even realize it. I should have picked up on that."

Sirius sat her up straight and looked her right in the eye. "You had no way of knowing who Andi was talking about, Khyana. Don't blame yourself for not picking up on something as coded as the information she gave you."

"But I should have got it," she muttered.

Sirius sighed, exasperated. "How many brunette women do you know, Khyana?"

"A few."

"And how many men do you know with dyed dirty blonde hair?"

"A few."

"Exactly. Andi could have been talking about anyone! You had no way of knowing it was Cam and Laura. It is not your fault."

Khyana sighed. "I guess. But still."

"No, no 'but still', Khyana. _It's not your fault_."

Khyana sighed again and snuggled closer against his shoulder.

"Whatever you say, Sirius," she said sleepily, and was soon fast asleep again.

Sirius looked down at her and moved a piece of stray hair out of her face.

"I love you," he murmured, smiling down at her.

* * *

Kelria came to at the sound of another body being thrown into her dungeon, followed by an "oomph". 

"Remus?" she whispered quietly.

"Kel!"

He moved toward her, and she reached out to him. She was in pain from the beating she had taken from Malfoy, but she allowed him to hold her close, trying not to wince with the pain.

"We've been so worried," Remus murmured against her hair.

Kelria relaxed against her fiancé, feeling safe finally.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know it was going to happen."

"I know. Yana feels horrible."

Kelria pulled away just enough to be able to see his face. "Why?"

"She received a warning about it back in April, from an informant of Cam's, but she didn't open the letter until last night, when it was too late. She feels responsible for this."

Kelria shook her head. "It's not her fault. Although, she should have cleaned up her desk sooner."

Remus nodded. "Agreed. But she already feels bad enough."

Kelria pulled away, wishing she could somehow reach her friend, let her know she wasn't to be blamed.

"There's a search party out for you, you know," Remus said.

Kelria shrugged. "I should have guessed. Who's heading it?"

"Sirius," Remus replied.

Kelria looked surprised. "Sirius Black?"

Remus raised an eyebrow. "How many other Siriuses do you know?"

"None."

"Of course Sirius Black. Khyana's in no condition to lead a search party."

"What about Dumbledore?"

"I don't even know if Dumbledore knows you're missing."

Kelria looked at him in disbelief. "I'm pretty sure he probably knows I'm gone."

Remus shrugged. "We didn't tell him."

"But he'll still know."

"Okay."

Kelria sighed. "How long have I been here?"

Remus shrugged. "You'd been missing about 12 hours when I left Sirius' place. I don't know how long ago that was, though. I'd been looking for you for about two hours when they grabbed me, so I dunno."

Kelria cried out in annoyance and anger, wishing she had something breakable to throw at the wall. "I'm an auror! An _auror_, Remus! I'm not _supposed_ to get taken by Death Eaters in the middle of an assignment!"

Remus nodded. "It's not your fault. They had informants."

"I bet Snape was one of them," Kelria hissed angrily.

Remus frowned. "You don't know that, Kel."

"But I can make an educated guess."

"You're starting to sound like Khyana."

Kelria whirled around. "Maybe it was Peter!"

Remus shook his head firmly, a frown in place that Kelria couldn't see in the dark.

"No. Peter wouldn't do something like that."

"You don't know that. How much time have you spent with him lately?"

Remus wouldn't admit that he hadn't spent any time with his friend in the recent past, and Kelria smirked, forgetting that her fiancé couldn't see her in the dark.

"So how do you know that he wouldn't do this?"

"Because I just do alright! It wasn't Peter I was thinking of when I said the Death Eaters had informants anyway."

"Oh no?"

"No."

"Then who were you talking about?"

"Cam Jones and Laura Masters."

Kelria heard the hurt in Remus' voice, and gaped in her disbelief.

"As in…?"

"The only Cam Jones and Laura Masters we know."

Kelria shook her head.

"I don't believe it."

"Believe it. It's the truth."

Kelria nearly passed out as she had a major flashback, and Remus had to catch her before she hit the floor.

_Kelria was sitting in the library, working on an essay, when she heard a loud crash from behind her. She turned quickly, and saw Laura Masters standing there, looking down at what used to be her schoolbag, clutching her left forearm._

_Kelria hurried over to help the other girl, but Laura glared at her._

"_I don't need your help, Song," she spat._

_Kelria straightened quickly, startled. "Excuse me?"_

"_I said I don't need your help. I can manage."_

_Kelria was shocked. She couldn't bring to mind anything she had ever done to Laura to make her so hostile._

"Kelria!"

Kelria stood up again, grabbing Remus' arm tightly.

"Ow, Kel, that hurts."

"I just had a flashback, Remus."

"I thought only Khyana had those."

"Well, I just had one. You probably don't remember this, but I was sitting in the library one day, minding my own business, and Laura was in there too. She dropped her book bag and was clutching her left forearm. When I went to help her, she snapped at me, and you told me that she was just mad because she thought Yana told you she was going to break up with you, and she was just mad at everyone who was Yana's friend! But Voldemort puts the Dark Mark on the left forearm! I bet she already had her Mark and she was being called and that's why she dropped her bag."

Remus looked doubtful. "I don't know about that, Kelria."

Kelria scowled. "Fine. I still think I'm right."

Remus smiled. "Alright, darling. You can think that."

* * *

**A/N:**_ There you go, people. It's longer than the others, kind of pointless...haha. Anyway, I don't know when the next one will be up, my internet's being kind of screwey lately...and I have to write it, so we'll have to see...I have 2 essays due this week and exams next week...so I don't know what's going to be going on there. Anyway, R&R._ **_SCRAAAAAAAAATCH! You scratched my CD! You picked it up in clear daylight and you scratched it!_**


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25: Paperwork**

Khyana was now doing the pacing in Sirius' living room, and she knew he was getting annoyed, but there was nothing else she could think of to do. Remus was now missing too.

"Na, stop. Na, stop. Na! Stop pacing!"

Khyana barely registered Sirius' voice. She didn't acknowledge his presence until he stepped behind her and put his arms around her waist.

"Khyana," he whispered. "Stop pacing. You're going to wear a hole in my carpet."

"I don't care. I can't do anything to bring them back, Sirius, and it's driving me nuts!"

Sirius spun her around so she was facing him and put his hands on her shoulders. "We're going to find them, Na. You just have to believe that."

* * *

Kelria and Remus had a system going that seemed to be working well. They were walking in circles, pacing. It kept them from getting stiff, and also from going insane. For Kelria, auror #83, to sit still and do nothing, was complete and utter torture, more so than any amount of cursing or physical pain. Remus had nearly gone mad sitting listening to her pace, so he had joined her.

Their pacing stopped abruptly when the dungeon door opened and someone stepped in. Both instinctively dropped to the ground.

A quiet laugh came from the doorway.

"You think dropping will stop me?" the woman's voice sneered. "You're first, Song."

Kelria picked herself up from the floor, determined not to give her any chance to touch her.

The woman reached for Kelria's arm, and she pulled back, snarling. "Don't touch me."

Bellatrix Lestrange smiled evilly, grabbing Kelria's forearm forcefully.

"Believe me, filth, I would like nothing better than to never have to touch you. Unfortunately, we can't have you running away on us, can we?"

Kelria considered fighting her, but quickly decided against it. Bellatrix had a wand, something Kelria was sadly lacking, and she didn't want to test Bellatrix's short temper by forcing her to use it; Kelria had no doubt she would.

Bellatrix led Kelria down a series of winding hallways, confusing Kelria so much that she knew she would never be able to find her way back to Remus if left to her own devices. She also knew that that was exactly what the Death Eaters wanted.

Bellatrix finally stopped and threw her into a small room, where she fell on her face. She bit back a cry of pain even as the blood left a bad taste in her mouth.

"Don't go anywhere now," Bellatrix said in a mock baby voice, and she shut the door.

Kelria shifted so she was lying on her back, thinking. She had been separated from Remus in a castle in a country she was unsure of. She sighed, and shrugged. She had faced worse.

She decided to get some sleep. She hadn't had any since she'd been taken, and she wasn't sure how long she'd be left in this room. Her last thought before sleep took her was that she couldn't die. Too many people needed her…

* * *

Remus didn't mind the dark, nor did he mind being alone. There were, however, several things he didn't like about the situation he was in. He had been captured by Death Eaters, taken to a country whose name he didn't know, had been thrown in a dungeon with his fiancée, and then had had his fiancée taken again. And he didn't know where she was. And he didn't like that. That was the main thing he didn't like.

He started pacing again, but without Kelria's steady breathing to keep his own steady, he was rapidly beginning to hyperventilate.

"Stay calm, Moony," he muttered, slowing his breathing quickly and trying to lower his heart rate.

He sat in a meditative position to calm himself down. His breathing slowed and his heart rate settled back to normal.

In his calm state, Remus was able to think better. He needed sleep. He would do no one any good if the Death Eaters came for him and he was too tired to concentrate.

* * *

Sirius was frustrated. He didn't like not knowing where anyone was. He had volunteered to stay behind during the search to make sure Khyana didn't do anything stupid, but he was starting to wish he hadn't. It had been over an hour since anyone had checked in, and they were supposed to make sure someone checked in every hour, on the hour. That was the deal. And it was driving Sirius nuts that they weren't keeping up their end of the deal.

He had sent his fiancée to bed half an hour ago, when she refused to stop pacing on his carpet. He could handle many things; watching someone pace was not one of them.

He growled in his throat, impatient. Where was James?

Suddenly there was a whirling noise in the fireplace, and Sirius spun around to face his best friend.

"Where the bloody hell have you been?" he hissed angrily.

James looked out of breath and was breathing heavily. "Running," he gasped.

"Why?"

James shook his head and held up two fingers. Sirius sighed impatiently and crossed his arms to wait.

"We've got a lead."

"What kind of lead?" Sirius asked, trying not to let himself get too excited. He knew how often leads fell through.

"I need Khyana."

Sirius shook his head firmly. "No. she's sleeping."

"No, she's not."

Both men spun around to see Khyana, looking determined and dangerous, standing in the doorway.

"What do you need, James?"

James hesitated and shot Sirius a look, but his friend was totally focussed on Khyana. James wondered if that was intentional…

"No."

Khyana turned her attention from James to glare at Sirius.

"He's my squad leader, Sirius. If he needs me, I go."

James felt a small thrill that Khyana trusted him enough to say that to Sirius, but then he noted Sirius' face. His friend looked terrified.

Khyana seemed to notice the look on Sirius' face, too, because her own expression changed and she smiled softly at him. She closed the distance between them in two long strides and put her hands on Sirius' chest.

"I'll be fine, Sirius, I promise," she said softly. "We'll be careful, I won't do anything unless James tells me to. This is what I'm trained for, darling."

Sirius' arms went around her in a powerful embrace and she let her head fall against his chest. His heart was in his throat.

"Be careful, baby."

"I will."

Khyana reached up and kissed him quickly, before turning and leaving with James.

Sirius watched her go, wishing there was something more he could do…

* * *

Khyana apparated with James to the place the searchers had set up their headquarters.

She looked around, surprised to see Lightfingers there.

"Lightfingers, hey!"

James looked from Khyana to the informant, then nodded to Frank behind Lightfingers, who stepped forward and motioned for the informant to follow him.

Khyana turned to James, confused.

"What's going on?"

"Lightfingers says he knows where Kel and Moony are. We just needed you to tell us that he really was who he said he was."

Khyana put her hands on her hips. "That's all you wanted me for?"

James sighed. "I can't risk you going out to the field, Khyana."

Khyana growled in her throat. "This is about the Order, James. I'm not _in_ the Order anymore. I want to go looking for them. She's my best friend too!"

James nodded. "I know. But Sirius would have my head if you got taken."

Khyana raised an eyebrow. "I can look after myself, James."

"I know. But as your squad leader, I am forbidding you to go after Kelria and Remus. You can stay here, if you like, and organise everything."

"Paperwork," Khyana muttered darkly.

"Yes, paperwork. But it's the only involvement I'm going to allow you, Khyana."

Khyana glared at him, considering her options. She could blow James off completely and go look for her friends herself, but she had promised Sirius. Or she could stay here, far out of danger, where everyone wanted her, and do paperwork, take reports, and organise the search. At least she would be doing something…

"Alright, James, I'll do your paperwork."

James grinned. "You're a doll, Khyana, I owe you!"

"You bet you do," she muttered darkly. "I'll remember that, James."

* * *

**A/N:**_ EXAMS ARE SO OVER! Woohoo! What's going to happen to Kelria and Remus? Or Sirius and Khyana for that matter...haha, your guess is as good as mine! R&R please._


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26: Another Casualty**

Kelria's dreams were not pleasant. She saw Khyana sitting at a desk in a room she didn't recognise, surrounded by paperwork. People filed in and out, talking to Khyana when they arrived then leaving quickly, Khyana taking notes all the while. Every once in a while, Khyana would look around and rub the back of her neck, the motion she always made when she felt someone was watching her, and this made Kelria wonder if what she was seeing was actually happening.

As Kelria watched, James and Sirius entered, looking furious, and had an argument in front of Khyana's desk, which she appeared to solve and sent them on their way. As they were leaving, a person in a cloak came in and approached Khyana's desk. She looked up and smiled, and the hood was thrown off to reveal a man Kelria didn't recognise but Khyana obviously did. Khyana's facial expression changed to one of concern, and she picked up her own cloak and followed the man out the door, pausing only to write a hasty note and lock the door. Kelria was left looking at an empty room, and a scream from outside the dream door woke her up quickly.

"Khyana!"

Kelria was still on the dungeon floor, sweating. She sat up, feeling very stiff and uncomfortable.

The man who had come on was obviously known to Khyana, but then why had she screamed? Had he been a traitor, too, like Cam and Laura? Had he tricked her? There were too many questions to which Kelria didn't have answers. She didn't like that.

A wave of nausea swept over her as she remembered something else. She had been separated from Remus, and there was a reason. Bellatrix had said "You're first" when she come for her, which meant that the Death Eaters had something in store for both Kelria and Remus…whatever it was, they wanted her to be done first. She wondered if it was some form of torture and they figured they'd need more time to break her before moving on to Remus. Or was it that they thought she would be the easiest to break and so were doing her first to get it over with…

She set her jaw. Whatever the case, she would prove more difficult than they could ever guess. She had been trained as an auror and also as an Order member. She could stand torture, and she would not break.

She gave a small snort of laughter. She would surprise the Death Eaters. They wouldn't break her, no matter how hard they tried. She'd made up her mind, and once Kelria Song makes up her mind, it's hard to change it.

She sighed. Her mind was made up, but the lump of fear sitting in the pit of her stomach had not lessened, and she didn't think it would ever lessen. She was here to be tortured, and when she wouldn't give them the information they wanted, the Death Eaters would likely kill her. It was not a pleasant thought, but it could not be changed, either. She couldn't give up her friends and everything she had worked so hard for. The Death Eaters would just have to be disappointed.

The door of her dungeon opened slowly, and a head appeared around it, grinning evilly.

"Good morning, Miss Song. Lord Voldemort will see you now."

* * *

Remus had no dreams to plague his sleep, but he almost wished he had. If he'd had dreams to wonder about, he would not have to wonder what was happening to his fiancée. He wasn't sure how long it had been since she had been taken; he didn't have a watch. He was almost glad he didn't know, however. If he had known, he probably would have worried even more.

He stood and began pacing again, thinking. There was a search effort going on to find them, and if they were lucky, maybe Khyana had had a dream and could point them in the semi-right direction.

He sighed. The likelihood of them being rescued was 0. They would have to get very lucky indeed for Khyana to have a dream, and he didn't like depending on luck.

He wondered one more time what was happening to Kelria. If only someone would come to him, he could ask them what was happening to his fiancée, even if they wouldn't answer him. They might laugh at him, but he had to ask, had to know. He wouldn't even mind seeing Lord Voldemort himself if he could tell him what was happening to Kelria…

He shook himself. What was he thinking? Lord Voldemort wouldn't tell him what was happening to Kelria! Lord Voldemort would kill him! And that was unacceptable. He could not die, he couldn't. He couldn't do that to Kelria, leave her alone. If she died here and he left alive, he would never forgive himself, and he knew that if it were reversed, she would never forgive herself.

Remus resumed his meditative position and sat back to just think. He needed a plan. As far as he knew, he was alone in a large castle guarded by many Death Eaters--likely not all of them, but he didn't know--and Kelria was also with him. There was a search effort out to find them, but they likely wouldn't, so he was on his own. He had no way to communicate with anyone from the Order or Kelria's auror squad, and he had no wand.

He gave a cry of frustration and kicked the wall, which only resulted in a sore toe and loud swearing.

* * *

Khyana was getting bored. People came in, gave their reports, and left again. She checked in with Sirius every hour, and he seemed to be growing more impatient as time went on. He had joined the search when she had become the organiser, but it didn't seem to be going very well, and that irritated him.

She looked down at the paper she had on the desk in front of her and noticed that she had begun to doodle. She blushed as she noted that there were hearts all over the paper, and the initials _SB+KM_ were in every one.

The door opened and she quickly put the paper on her lap, upside down.

"Hey, Frank. How's it going?"

Frank gave an impatient sigh. "Not good."

"What are you lot doing?"

"We're trying to use some tracking thing James and Dumbledore have put together…but it's not working so well. Sirius is getting annoying. Can we send him back here?"

Khyana thought about the paper she had in her lap and shook her head. "Nope. I don't want to deal with him."

"Yeah, see, that's the problem. Neither does anyone else. And we thought since he's your fiancé…"

Khyana raised an eyebrow. "That he may be, but he's in _your_ Order."

Frank gave her an uncomfortable look. "What's that got to do with anything?"

Khyana gave a small laugh. "That's what this is about, isn't it? That's why I'm stuck here while the rest of you are out looking."

Frank didn't deny it, and Khyana nodded. "I thought so."

Frank sighed again. "We need something for Sirius to do," he said, changing the subject. Khyana took his comment in stride.

"What was Kelria doing when she disappeared?"

Frank looked uncomfortable, and Khyana nodded.

"Sorry, I forgot you can't tell me. Anyway, have Sirius go look around there, see what he can dig up."

"Good idea. That'll get him out of the way. Talk to you later, Khyana."

"Later, Frank."

Frank left the house, and Khyana rubbed the back of her neck. For a while now she'd had the idea that someone was watching her. It was not a pleasant feeling.

She returned to the paperwork in front of her and changed Sirius' status from _with James_ to _looking around where Kel was tonight_.

A few minutes later, the door burst open once again and Sirius burst in, followed closely by James, both looking furious.

"Hello, gentlemen, what can I do for you?" she asked, ignoring their facial expressions.

"Sirius won't go and do what I asked him to," James stated furiously, and Khyana had a distinct feeling of being the mother of two whiny boys.

"I want to stay and look for Kel and Moony!" Sirius countered.

"You _would_ be helping-"

"I don't _want_ to go over there-"

"-if you'd go look-"

"-it's depressing!"

"ENOUGH!"

Both men turned and looked at Khyana, who glared at them furiously.

"Sirius, you're annoying the people looking. Go do what James and Frank told you to do, you'll be more help that way. And James, stop _whining_ at me!"

Both men stared at her, then left, looking surly and annoyed. As they were leaving, Lightfingers entered, wearing his long cloak and looking at James and Sirius, giving them a wide berth.

"Hey, Lightfingers, how's it going?"

Lightfingers stared at her, then motioned for her to follow him. "I have something I need to show you."

Khyana was confused. "Why don't you find someone else? I'm supposed to stay here." The hairs on the back of her neck were standing on end.

Lightfingers scowled. "No one here trusts me. I need you to come, it's very important."

Khyana nodded, then leaned over to write a quick note.

_Sirius,_

_I've gone with Lightfingers to investigate something. Don't freak, I might not be in the Order anymore, but I'm still a good auror. Talk to you when I get back._

_I love you._

_Khyana._

She gathered her cloak and threw it over her shoulders, knowing it was fairly chilly out for July, and followed Lightfingers out of the house.

She remembered reaching the porch, and the last thing she saw was Lightfingers' surprised face before she screamed, blacked out and knew no more.

* * *

Sirius was furious. He'd been delegated to searching for clues around the site of Kelria's mission and he was not happy. Searching for clues had always been left up to the aurors, who had been trained to do it. He had never had the patience for it.

He sighed and decided he better get started. The faster he started, the faster he could be done.

He wasn't exactly sure what he was supposed to do to start, but he figured he couldn't go wrong if he just started walking around, looking.

So that's what he did. And that's how James found him two hours later, when he came by to check up on him, looking grim.

"Find anything?"

Sirius jumped about a foot in the air.

"Merlin, James, you scared me! I didn't hear you show up."

"I apparated. There was a pop."

Sirius shook his head. "I guess I missed it. No, I haven't found anything. Whoever it was knew what they were doing."

James nodded. "We had assumed that. Unfortunately, that's not good news for us."

"No, it's not," Sirius agreed.

There was another _pop_ as Frank apparated beside James, looking even more grim than James.

"Hey, Frank, I thought you were staying back at the site…"

"I just went to check in with Khyana. She's not there."

"What?!"

Frank nodded at Sirius' exclamation. "No one's seen her for two hours. We were all so engrossed in our work, we forgot to send someone to check in with her."

Sirius' face was sheet white, and the three of them apparated together back to the house.

"Is there any clue as to where she could have gone?" Sirius asked, looking around.

"We haven't found anything," Frank replied.

Sirius walked over to the desk and gave a cry as he discovered Khyana's note. James and Frank hurried to his side.

"She went with Lightfingers…I still don't know if I trust that man," Frank said thoughtfully.

Sirius looked at James, who still looked grim.

"We're going into full search mode with Khyana. She might have been with Lightfingers for a bit, but that was two hours ago, and no one's heard anything from her since. I do remember seeing Lightfingers coming in when we were leaving, Sirius, so she's been gone the same length of time we have. I don't imagine that she would have left us in the dark this length of time if she could contact us. She may be impulsive and sometimes brash, but she's not stupid; she knows we'll want to know where she is. Add her to the list of those missing, Frank."

Frank nodded grimly and disapparated. Sirius looked very worried.

James turned to his friend and put his hand on his shoulder. "We'll find her, Sirius. You just have to believe that."

Sirius thought it ironic that those were the very words he himself had said to his girlfriend hours previously.

* * *

**A/N:**_ There you go. I'm going away for two weeks on Friday and I prolly won't have time to write another one before I go, so this is what you get. Enjoy!_


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter 27: A Brush with Death**

Kelria followed the Death Eater out of her dungeon, down more long twisting hallways, into a large room. She was thrown onto the floor, then the large door closed loudly as the Death Eater left.

She tasted blood, and spat onto the floor, not caring. She didn't have to clean up the mess, so she didn't care about making it.

She was alone in the room, she saw, and there was a large chair at the end opposite the door. Her blood ran cold as she recognised the room: it was the one Sara always brought her to in the dreams.

Since she was there alone and she didn't know how long she'd be there before someone came for her, she decided to look around.

It was a fairly plain room, the chair being the only furniture. There was no tapestry on the stone walls, nor were there any rugs on the floor.

"For such a rich group of people, their awfully skimpy on the furnishings," she muttered cynically.

She inspected the walls, as she had been taught at Auror School, to see if there was any way of escape, but she did it out of habit only. She did not expect to find a way out, and she was not disappointed.

All the same, she threw a bit of a fit and kicked the wall with her foot, which resulted only in a sore toe…

She bent over and inspected it. "I think it's broken," she announced aloud.

She hobbled to the center of the room, and sat down, broodingly crossing her arms.

"Alright, I'm sick of being in the dark by myself," she called. "Someone can show up now."

A cold laugh greeted her words.

"You're awfully brave, Miss Song. I wouldn't be so cocky if I were you."

"Well then, I guess it's a good thing you're not me," she replied, trying to figure out where the voice was coming from.

It wasn't so dark in the room that she couldn't see, but she didn't see anyone else in the room with her.

The laugh came again, and she suddenly knew who was laughing at her.

"Alright, Voldemort, show yourself," she called angrily.

And he did. She was suddenly not the only one in the room; Lord Voldemort was sitting in the high back chair at the front of the room, looking at her over fingers steepled in front of his face.

"You look like Dumbledore," she told him bluntly.

Voldemort's eyes flashed angrily and his hands fell to his sides. Kelria smirked. She liked making him angry.

"We can do this the easy way or the hard way, Miss Song. It's up to you."

Kelria said nothing. She had said all she planned to say.

It was Voldemort's turn to smirk. "I see. So that's how it's going to be, is it?"

Again Kelria said nothing.

Voldemort sighed. "I do _so_ like you, Miss Song. I would hate to have to kill you because you won't cooperate."

"I'll _never_ cooperate," Kelria hissed. She mentally kicked herself.

_Say nothing more_, she told herself angrily.

Voldemort grinned. "So she speaks. I think that by the end of our little session you will have changed your mind, Miss Song."

Kelria managed to hold her tongue, though barely. He really was irritating.

"I have several of your friends in my charge, Miss Song," Voldemort said lazily, inspecting his fingernails as if she did not exist.

Kelria did not reply. She knew he had Remus, but that was not several. She knew Voldemort was a chronic liar, however, and he could be merely trying to infuriate her. Well, it wasn't going to work.

Then she remembered her dream. What if he also had Khyana in his dungeons…?

Voldemort chuckled softly. "You know, of course, that we have your fiancé in our custody, but you will, I am sure, be delighted to hear that we also have your friend Miss Malfoy in our dungeons. She has been made to feel right at home; after all, she _is_ at home."

Kelria started. She was in the Malfoy Estate? She was surprised. Khyana had painted it as a dark, cold place, but Kelria had never expected something as horrible as this.

"Of course, I have added a few of my own additions," Voldemort was saying, "So she wouldn't recognise it. She was also drugged when she was brought here, and when she had her dream about it, all she saw was this room. It used to be her father's study, you know. I changed some of the decorations."

Kelria rolled her eyes. The mindless babbling was getting on her nerves, as she was sure it was supposed to. Why was he telling her all this? She didn't want to be here, and it was pointless for him to try and butter her up, to recruit her. She would never join the Death Eaters.

"I am sure you are wondering why I am telling you all this," Voldemort finally said, sounding bored. "I don't like to get right down to business. It is much more enjoyable to talk to my prisoners and make them feel like I'm their friend. I am _not_ your friend, Miss Song."

"I know," Kelria replied. "I don't want to be your friend."

Voldemort raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure about that, Miss Song?"

Kelria nodded firmly. "Very sure," she replied. "I will _never_ join your side. I have made my choice and nothing you can do or say will change my mind. Trust me."

Voldemort stood, looking at her furiously, and raised his wand. "_Crucio_."

The pain was like nothing Kelria'd ever experienced before. She cried out, unable to stop herself, and Voldemort laughed.

When it was over, Kelria collapsed upon herself on the floor, panting. She glared up at Voldemort, who was grinning at her.

"How did that feel, Miss Song?" he asked, grinning wickedly.

She didn't answer, just wiped a trail of blood from her mouth.

He laughed. "Yes, I thought it might hurt a little. However, you can stop it, Miss Song. We don't have to do it again. All you have to do is say you'll join my Death Eaters."

"Never," Kelria spat, and Voldemort angrily raised his wand again, sending more pain her way.

Again, Kelria found herself in excruciating pain. She cried out, and heard Voldemort's laughter yet again, but the laughter stopped when the door opened at the back of the room.

"I gave _specific_ instructions that I was not to be disturbed!" Voldemort screamed at the Death Eater at the door.

"I know, Master," came Lucius Malfoy's voice, "But we're having some…difficulty…with one of the other prisoners."

Voldemort looked absolutely livid. "Take Miss Song back to her cell. You were instructed to deal with any prisoner problems."

Lucius bowed his head. "I know, Master, but she is being particularly difficult."

"She's _ill_, Merlin's beard!" Voldemort cried, leaving the room. He turned when he reached the doorway, and pointed at Kelria. "We are not finished, Miss Song."

Kelria smirked. Good ol' Yana. Trust her to make a ruckus and save her best friend's life.

* * *

Khyana woke up in a room that was vaguely familiar, although she couldn't quite place it. She racked her brain, trying to figure out how she'd arrived here. She remembered seeing Lightfingers' surprised face at the search party headquarters, but after that it was all a blank.

She stood and began to inspect the room. There were trinkets here that belonged in the room of a young girl…dolls, porcelain figurines…

Khyana recoiled and curled herself up in a ball in the corner. She knew where she was; this was her room when she was a child. She began to rock back and forth. She had told Sirius that Kelria and Remus _weren't_ being held at the Malfoy Estate…she couldn't have been more wrong. Would they ever be rescued now? Even if they somehow got a lead pointing them in this direction, Sirius would correct them, saying that she had told him that this wasn't the right place.

They couldn't keep her here, they couldn't. She stood and began banging on the door, screaming. She knew the Death Eaters wouldn't care; they would find it amusing that she was in such pain. However, she thought if she could annoy them enough, they might let her out and put her somewhere else. Maybe they would put her in with Remus and/or Kelria…she resumed her banging.

* * *

**A/N:**_ YOU'RE WELCOME! I packed all day, then wrote this most of this evening! So you better be grateful! Anyway, I really am leaving tomorrow for two weeks, so you'll just have to wait for updates. The next chapter will explain what happpens between when Khyana starts banging and when Malfoy interrupts Kelria's session with Voldemort. R&R, people!_


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter 28: The Dark Lord Comes to Call**

Khyana's gaolers were not pleased with the noise. Her brother showed up at the door with Rodolphus and Bellatrix Lestrange, all three looking mutinous.

"What do you think you are doing?" Lucius hissed angrily, pointing his wand at her head.

She shrugged, struggling to hide her fear and revulsion behind sarcasm. "Getting your attention."

"Well, you've got it. What do you want?"

"I want out of here."

Bellatrix gave her a maniacal grin. "I'm sure you do. Unfortunately, the Dark Lord's instructions were quite clear: you are to remain separated from the other prisoners. They may be placed together, but you must be kept alone."

"You weren't supposed to tell her that, Bella," Lucius hissed.

Bellatrix shrugged. "You tell, you're dead."

Lucius rolled his eyes. "Get her out of here, Lestrange."

"Get your hands off me!" Bellatrix screamed as Rodolphus dragged her out of the hallway.

"Now," Lucius hissed at Khyana, his face inches from hers, "You keep quiet. I don't want to hear another sound from you."

Khyana had a sudden urge to spit in his face, and she did so, to his fury.

"You insolent little-"

"Lucius!"

He spun round. Dolohov was standing just behind him.

"What do you want, Dolohov?"

"Lestrange sent me to cover for him."

Lucius looked as suspicious as Khyana felt. Lestrange wouldn't do that unless…

Khyana laughed. "Rodolphus doesn't think you can handle me by yourself, Lucius," she said snidely. "He thinks you're too weak."

"Shut up, brat," Lucius spat. "I don't want another word out of you."

Khyana returned to her room, looking around yet again and struggling not to be sick. Then she began speaking, stories she had heard when she was younger from the other children, memories she had of her friends and school days, anything that came into her head.

"Shut up!" Lucius screamed again.

Khyana began to speak louder, defying her brother's orders.

Lucius entered the room long enough to slap Khyana hard across her face. She fell onto her side but, though she could taste the blood in her mouth, she didn't stop speaking. She didn't even know what she was saying anymore. All she knew was that she had to keep speaking; if she could keep Lucius here, maybe send him for Voldemort, it would save Kelria. She didn't know how she knew that, she just felt it in her bones.

"I've had enough," Lucius hissed angrily. "Dolohov, stay here."

"Where are you-?"

The door closing cut off Dolohov's answer, but Khyana had a feeling Lucius hadn't deigned to answer him anyway.

She continued speaking, even though she was pretty sure no one could hear her. She'd just reached the _Tale of the Three Brothers_ when the door opened again and someone walked in. She didn't need to look up to know it was not Lucius who had entered. It was someone much more sinister than Lucius, and that could only mean one thing: The Dark Lord had come to call.

* * *

Kelria was returned to her cell by Malfoy, who kept muttering under his breath about Khyana. Kelria caught random words that he said, like "_annoying", "she'll pay_"…mundane things Kelria didn't care about. She knew Khyana was more than capable of taking care of herself. Although, admittedly, she didn't have a wand, and she was up against the evillest wizard in history…maybe she could use a little help. Kelria began looking for a way to get out of her cell. Khyana had saved her life. The least she could do would be to return the favour.

* * *

Sirius was furious.

"How could she _do_ this to us? HOW?! Is she a _complete_ brainless idiot?"

"Sirius!" Lily cried, shocked. "How do you know it was her fault? Maybe Lightfingers tricked her."

Sirius glared at her. "She _trusted_ Lightfingers. She told us he was okay! So even if he tricked her, she still brought him to us in the first place!"

"I don't think he tricked her," Frank pointed out. "He brought her the information about Cam and Laura in the first place, and the information about the dates and whatnot. I think he's alright. I think they were _both_ tricked."

"Well, what are we going to do?"

Suddenly, there was a faint _pop_ and Dumbledore appeared in the middle of the room.

"Professor!" Lily cried, surprised.

Dumbledore looked grim. "Who wants to find some prisoners?"

* * *

Khyana stood straight, coming barely to Voldemort's shoulder, but she didn't care that he was taller than she was. She glared at him, furious.

"What seems to be the problem, Miss Malfoy?" he asked, his voice dripping with false sweetness.

"I want to move," she answered in a clear, firm voice.

He laughed softly. "Oh no, girl, I'm afraid that is not possible. You see, this is part of your torture, to be placed in the same room you used when you were a girl. Don't you have fond memories of this room?" he added nastily.

"No," she replied, furious. How dare he?

"Oh," he said, pouting as though he cared. "Well, too bad then."

Khyana was furious. "By the way, Bella told me that I'm not supposed to be put with the other prisoners."

Voldemort's eyes were slits of anger, and his lipless mouth pursed angrily.

"I will deal with her later. In the meantime, I'm dealing with you currently. You have been bothering my Death Eaters. _Crucio_."

There was no fancy segway into the curse, it just came. And Khyana was totally unprepared. Thankfully (or maybe not so thankfully), her teeth were clenched when he did it, so she didn't scream, which made her happy and him furious.

"My Lord!"

Voldemort ended the curse and turned, furious, to the Death Eater who had spoken. It was Travers. He glared at Khyana angrily, and Khyana remembered vaguely that Kelria had killed his older brother when she was in seventh year.

"What?" Voldemort asked angrily.

"We have intruders."

Voldemort swore loudly and left with Travers, leaving Khyana's door open and no guard.

She wondered if she should just stay where she was, but knew better than that. If the intruders were there to save her, then she would do better trying to find them than sitting around waiting for them. They would probably assume she was in the dungeon and look for her there. But they wouldn't find her. And they wouldn't know where her rooms were.

She left the corridor quickly, going down three flights of stairs on the back staircase, which brought a flood of memories.

_There were giggles behind her._

"_Stop it, Bella! If we get caught, we're going to be dead!"_

_Bella stopped laughing and shot Narcissa a grin._

"_I love breaking rules," she whispered._

"_Me too," Khyana agreed, and the two girls giggled softly._

"_Won't your house-elves find us?" Andi asked, ever the cautious one._

"_Oh hush, Andi. Khyana knows what she's doing, don't you?"_

_Khyana glowed under Bella's praise and nodded. It was so good to be Bella's favourite…_

Khyana shook her head. That was a long time ago. She was no longer Bella's favourite. She was, in fact, Bella's _least_ favourite. Well, maybe second least. Sirius was very least.

The thought of Sirius made Khyana's heart soar. Maybe he was part of the rescue party…

Just then, she caught sight of a group of people. She quickly hid herself in an alcove off the side of the hallway, not sure if they were friend or foe.

"-Have to split up," James' voice drifted toward her hiding place. "Sirius, you follow this corridor with Frank, Harvey and I will go this way."

"Right," Sirius replied. "See you in a bit. Be safe."

"Always."

Khyana stepped out of her alcove as Sirius and Frank approached.

"Who's there?" Sirius asked loudly, he and Frank both holding their wands up pointed at Khyana's chest.

"It's me, Khyana," she replied.

Both wands dropped quickly, and Sirius enveloped her in a tight hug.

"You scared me. You have a lot of explaining to do."

Khyana nodded. "Later. Remus and Kel are downstairs."

"Where are we?" Frank asked, holding his lit wand up to look at the pictures on the wall.

Khyana shivered. "Malfoy Mansion."

"I thought you said-"

"I know what I said. I was wrong, okay?" Khyana snapped, and Sirius shut up quickly.

"Okay, sorry," Sirius said.

"Come on. We have to get Remus and Kel."

* * *

**A/N:**_ Alright, there y'all go. I apologise for the LOOOOOOONG delay, I ended up being gone longer than I expected. I leave again tomorrow, but only for a week this time. But then I'm going to be super busy, so we'll see what happens. You might have to wait until school starts...and I'm dreading it. Hope you liked it, R&R!_


	29. Chapter 29

**Chapter 29: Rescue**

Khyana, Sirius and Frank hurried along the corridor, past Khyana's rooms (which made her shudder and grab Sirius' hand) and down to the dungeons in the basement, where they met up with James, Harvey, Dumbledore and several other members of the Order.

Everyone was very glad to see Khyana, but were distressed by the fact that Remus and Kelria had not yet been found, and Khyana wasn't exactly sure where they were.

"Well, we shall just have to search all the dungeons then," James decided.

Khyana winced. "I suppose so…"

"What's wrong?"

"Well…there are a very great number of dungeons," she replied.

James sighed in exasperation. "We shall just have to split up then, won't we?"

Dumbledore was watching this exchange with a small smile on his face, and Khyana could not help but wonder why he was letting James make all the decisions.

"Sounds like a plan, can we do it quickly, please?" Sirius asked impatiently.

James shot his best friend a quick glare, then gave a decisive nod. "Right. Sirius, you and Yana can go down that hallway, Frank and Dumbledore, you go that way, Harvey and I will go this way…"

Sirius and Khyana heard nothing more as James passed out of their range of hearing.

"What the hell happened with Lightfingers, Khyana?" Sirius demanded.

Khyana rolled her eyes. "I'll explain it all once we break Kel and Remus out of here, and not a moment before, got it? Patience is a virtue, love."

Sirius rolled his eyes and said nothing more as they silently checked dungeons for their friends.

"I don't have my wand," Khyana whispered suddenly. Then she panicked. "And I haven't taken my potion in…Merlin and Salazar!"

They had reached a cell that was occupied, but not by Kelria or Remus.

"Lightfingers?"

The informant looked up groggily from the floor of his cell.

"Khyana?"

Khyana winced at the sound of his voice. It sounded very hoarse…as if he had been screaming. She put the thought quickly out of her mind and focussed on getting him out.

"Sirius?"

Sirius glared at her, then his expression changed to one of incredulity.

"You have got to be bloody joking! I am _not_ breaking this man out, he got you in this mess in the first place!"

Khyana glared at him. "Sirius."

He rolled his eyes, sighed exasperatedly, the raised his wand and muttered _"Confringo_." The door of Lightfingers' cell blasted open, and Khyana hurried in to look at the man.

"Can you walk?"

Lightfingers struggled to his feet, grimacing. "I don't think so."

"Sirius, help him," Khyana ordered. "I'll go ahead and look for Remus and Kel."

Sirius did not look pleased about being ordered to do anything, especially helping the man he thought responsible for his fiancée's abduction.

Khyana left him no time to argue, hurrying ahead and looking in every cell for any sign of her best friend or her best friend's fiancé.

Finally, she found the cell she had been looking for.

"Remus!"

Remus looked perfectly healthy, and very surprised to see her.

"Yana! What are you doing here?"

"Rescuing you, of course. However I don't have a wand, so we'll have to wait for Sirius. Have you been to see Lord Voldemort yet?"

Remus shook his head. "No. But Kel has. I'm not sure where she is."

Khyana furrowed her brow. "We'll find her, Remus, don't worry. Sirius!" she added, calling back to her fiancé. "Hurry up!"

Sirius finally arrived, nearly dragging poor Lightfingers behind him.

"Khyana, in my back pocket is something you might like," he panted as he heaved the informant off his back and leaned him against the wall.

Khyana checked, and in the pocket was a small vial of a very familiar potion. She gave a cry of delight.

"My potion! Why didn't you mention earlier that you had it, Sirius?" she asked accusingly.

Sirius shot her an annoyed look. "I haven't exactly had a chance, darling."

"I suppose it doesn't really matter, I haven't got a wand, but I'll take it just in case," Khyana said, downing the potion in one.

"Great, now that that's over with, how about one of you two get me out of here?" Remus said, getting slightly annoyed.

"Oh, sorry, Remus," Khyana cried. "Sirius, let Remus out, will you?"

Sirius looked like he had something he wanted to say to his fiancée but kept his mouth shut and blasted his best friend out as quickly as he had let Lightfingers out.

The four hurried down the corridor further, Remus and Khyana checking every cell in hopes of finding Kelria.

Finally, they reached the end of the corridor. They had not yet located Kelria, but had decided to leave Lightfingers in a small alcove, rather than drag him along. He was in a lot of pain, and he was slowing the friends down.

"And if he happens to be caught and killed, that's not our problem," Sirius had muttered. Khyana had shot him a stern glare.

"Now which way?" Remus asked at the end of the corridor.

"This way," Khyana replied, indicating the left-hand corridor.

"Why?"

Khyana rolled her eyes at her fiancé. "This was my house, Sirius, I know which way to go."

"There aren't more dungeons down there," Sirius asked sceptically, looking down the right corridor.

"No," Khyana barked angrily. "Why can't you just trust me, Sirius?

"I do. I'm just wondering."

"It doesn't matter what's down that hallway. It's nothing important," Khyana replied, turning her back stiffly on the offending hallway and marching smartly down the left-hand one.

Sirius and Remus exchanged looks. Something about that hallway had scared Khyana, and Sirius resolved to figure out just what it was.

* * *

Kelria had been broken out of her cell by James Potter, and they were currently trying to find the rest of the rescue party and get out of the house. It gave her the shivers, and she just wanted to find her wand, her friends, and get out.

"Well, well, well. What have we here?"

Kelria, James and Harvey stopped dead, the two men pulling out their wands. A high pitched cackle met their ears.

"Bellatrix," Kelria said, her voice full of hatred and venom.

James nodded almost imperceptively. "Stay back, Kelria."

Kelria glared at her squad leader, but did as asked; she knew she'd only hinder the battle without a wand.

"It looks like a rescue party and an escaped prisoner," Lucius' voice said.

"And you look surrounded," said a voice behind the Death Eaters.

* * *

Khyana's group arrived at the battle scene shortly after Dumbledore and Frank.

"Khyana, get behind me," Sirius said very quietly.

"Not bloody likely," Khyana hissed back.

Sirius gave her one of his looks. "Khyana Malfoy, if you know what's good for you, you will stay behind me. Because if you don't and by some miracle you manage to survive, I _will_ kill you."

Khyana sighed in agreement and nodded. She would not be helpful if she tried to join without a wand.

"I want my wand," she said quietly.

"Stay here," Sirius said sternly. "I mean it, Khyana. Remus, make sure she stays here."

Khyana nodded. "Okay," she said in resignation, as Remus also nodded.

Sirius rushed into the middle of the fray. It was, admittedly, a very unfair fight. Five Order members on two Death Eaters…Bellatrix and Lucius managed somehow to get out, much to the annoyance of the Order members. Dumbledore had managed to find the prisoners' wands, and he handed them back amidst much hugging and joyous reunions.

"We have to get out of here," he said, looking around furtively. "Everyone, I can only lift the anti-Apparition charm for a few moments, so you're going to have to hurry."

Everyone nodded, and spun as one on the spot, disappearing in a simultaneous _pop_.

* * *

**A/N:**_I know, it took a loooooooooooooooong time to get up! I had a major writer's block. Hopefully the next one won't take as long. Okay, so after reading DH, I realise that there are some time issues...like how the Potters were under the Fidelius Charm for Harry's birthday etc., and Snape wasn't in the Order until after their deaths...which was in HBP, but was sort of contradicted in DH, so I'm confused and am leaving my story the way it is. I apologise if this offends anyone. Oh, and I haven't forgotten about Lightfingers. You'll just have to wait and see..._


	30. Chapter 30

**Chapter 30: Fourteen Years After the Fact**

Khyana had no idea where the others had apparated to, and she didn't want to know. She had arrived back in her own home, glad of the privacy. She wondered briefly if she should somehow get a message to the others to let them know that she was okay, but she was too exhausted. She fell on her couch and was promptly asleep.

_They were on the dungeon level, a place Khyana hated on the best of days. In the middle of the night, she hated it even more. But there was no deterring Bella when she got an idea in her head. The adults were all upstairs at the Yuletide Ball being held by Khyana's parents._

_And at 7, it was an honour to be included in anything Bella did, let alone be her favourite. Khyana had not believed Narcissa at first when she'd said that Bella liked Khyana best of all the pureblood girls, but Andi had confirmed, and Bella was certainly acting it. The Hogwarts fourth-year was an idol to all the younger pureblood girls._

_Bella's giggle reached Khyana's ears, and she couldn't help but get caught up in the excitement of the excursion. It was such fun to cheat the adults and house-elves and do things they weren't supposed to do, under the cover of darkness._

_The hallway to the right was a little-used corridor Khyana had never been down. She didn't much want to go now, but Bella did, and Khyana was powerless to deny Bella anything she wanted. They had snuck down the servants' stair at Bella's request, and had come out at the fork of the corridors. Bella, always the reckless one, had chosen to go left from the stairs, not right, toward the dungeons, like Khyana had expected. But Bella was never predictable. _

_The group of girls--numbering many more than Khyana would ever have dared to lead on such an adventure--hurried, giggling down the hallway. Khyana's heart was racing and she reached for Sara's hand, feeling very scared._

"_Are you scared?" Sara asked quietly._

"_Of course not," Khyana said defensively, her voice shaking slightly._

"_Me either," Sara agreed._

_Bella led the way, and the others followed, Khyana and Sara near the end of the group. _

"_What's down here?" Sara asked quietly._

_Khyana shook her head. "I don't know."_

_The shadows along the walls grew long in the light of the torch Bella was carrying. Despite what she told Sara, Khyana was scared. No, she was more than scared; she was terrified. If they were caught, it wouldn't matter what anyone said, Khyana would be the one in trouble. And she didn't like the dark. It wasn't pitch black because of Bella's torch, but she was not comfortable anyway._

_She didn't know why she'd never been down this corridor. She vaguely remembered her parents telling her once that it was out of bounds, that there were magical barriers and if she passed through them, they would know and she would be in big trouble. The memory sent a shiver of fear down her spine._

_Bella was moving quickly down the corridor, getting out of the sightline of the other girls, her torchlight fading._

"_Bella!" Andi called quietly. "Bella, come back, we can't see!"_

_Narcissa started to cry. At five, she was the youngest in the group, much to Andi's distress. She had tried to talk Bella out of letting Cissy come, but Bella didn't care, and Cissy wanted to go. Andi could never resist Narcissa's pout. _

_Andi grabbed Cissy's hand and motioned for the other girls to remain calm. Colby Rosier, Khyana's cousin on her mother's side, looked more scared than even Khyana and Sara. _

"_My family has a corridor like this one," she whispered to Khyana, clutching her other hand. "I've never been down it. My mother told me I'd be in big trouble if I ever went down it."_

"_My mother told me the same thing," Khyana replied quietly._

"_Are you scared, Khyana?" Colby asked nervously._

_Khyana was about to give her the same response she had given Sara but couldn't. "Yes," she replied quietly._

"_Me too," Colby agreed, squeezing her hand tighter._

_The corridor was now pitch black. Khyana couldn't see anyone, and her heart nearly stopped beating she was so frightened. She would have screamed, but she knew that would bring the adults and she would get in trouble, and that frightened her more than the dark. _

"_Andi?"_

"_Hm?"_

"_Can't you make a light with your wand or something?"_

"_No. I don't have my wand, and even if I did, I wouldn't be able to do any magic without getting in trouble."_

_Khyana began to tremble with fear, and not even Sara and Colby's arms around her shoulders could stop her trembling. She eventually collapsed on the floor, sobbing. She knew it was not proper to cry in public, but she was too terrified to scare._

"_Khyana!" Andi sounded really worried about her. "Girls, what's wrong with Khyana?"_

"_She doesn't like the dark," Colby explained, trying to keep her voice even. "We're also not supposed to be down this corridor. My parents have one at our house, they told me it had magical barriers and if I ever penetrated them, they would know and I would be in big trouble."_

"_BELLA!"_

"_Shh!" Colby shushed Andi's cry. "The adults will hear you and we'll all get in trouble!" _

"_I can't just let Bella disappear and leave Khyana like this," Andi countered, frustrated. _

"_We just need to get out of here," Colby answered._

"_Which way is back?" Sara whispered, also scared._

"_I don't know," Andi admitted. "I'd go after Bella, but I honestly don't know which way she went. It's too dark."_

_Khyana's hysterical sobs had softened, and she was now crying quietly on the floor, her back against the wall. It was a testimony to the loneliness of her childhood that she didn't cry out for anyone. Her parents had been cold, distant figures her whole life, and her brother, though loving and doting as any big brother should be, would not have been keen on her display._

"_We have to get back before the parents are finished," Sara whispered, fear tingeing her voice._

_Andi agreed. "Bella should be back eventually…"_

_How much longer the group sat there in the dark corridor, listening to Khyana and Narcissa cry, trying to keep their own fear from running rampant, none of them knew. All Khyana knew was she had never been so happy to see her brother as she was the moment she saw his torch light._

"_What the…Andromeda, would you like to explain what is going on here?" Lucius asked coldly._

_Khyana hurriedly wiped any trace of tears from her face and ran to her brother's side._

"_Khyana, I've been looking everywhere for you," Lucius said, his voice betraying a small part of his worry for his baby sister._

"_We've been down here," Khyana said quietly. "Bella was with us, but she disappeared."_

_Lucius' brow furrowed and Khyana knew he was angry with the older girl for leaving them alone in the dark._

"_How long have you been here?" he demanded, knowing how much his sister hated the dark._

_Andi shrugged. "I don't know, sir. I lost track of time in the dark."_

"_How long had you been down here before Bellatrix left you?"_

_Again, Andi shrugged. "Perhaps fifteen minutes."_

"_Fifteen minutes?" Lucius asked, incredulous. "Andromeda, you children have been missing for nearly an hour and a half."_

_Khyana barely managed to smuggle her cry of astonishment. An hour and fifteen minutes they had sat in the dark!_

"_Avery," Lucius said, turning to the young man at his elbow (whom Khyana had not notice until this point), "Continue down the corridor until you find Bellatrix Black, and when you do, inform her that I request her presence in my quarters. The rest of you, come with me. I'll see that you get back to bed alright."_

_Avery nodded once stiffly, and continued along the corridor. The remaining girls followed Lucius, who kept a tight hold on his little sister's hand, up to their rooms. _

"_If you'll excuse me now, ladies, I require my sister's presence for only a moment and then I will go and have my meeting with Miss Bellatrix and get a straight answer from her. Goodnight."_

_Khyana followed her brother out of the room, still slightly shaken from her episode in the dark._

"_Are you okay, Khyana?" He asked, trying to mask his worry._

_Khyana nodded slowly, then shook her head. "I was scared, Lucius," she said very quietly._

"_I know. But you're okay now, right?" he asked, as if willing her to answer so he could move on._

_Sensing her brother's impatience, Khyana nodded and turned away from him. _

"_Can I go back in now?" she asked._

"_Yes," Lucius replied, his relief obvious. "Goodnight, SK."_

"'_Night."_

_Hearing the endearment especially for her from her big brother made Khyana feel slightly better. She allowed herself a small smile. It was so good to be loved; Bella and Lucius both loved her, and so did Andi and Sara and Colby. Yes, Khyana was quite content with her life._

* * *

Fourteen years later, Khyana awoke on her couch, tears streaming down her face. When had things gone so wrong? When had Lucius stopped being her doting, adoring, loving older brother and become her enemy? Khyana did not know; she just knew the change had happened. When had Bella become a blood-thirsty killer? When had she and Colby grown so far apart? And why, oh why, did Sara have to leave her? 

Khyana allowed herself another hour of her sobbing pity party. She was content with her life as it was, but for an hour, she allowed herself to wish it had stayed the way it was when she was seven, when her brother had loved her and looked out for her instead of trying to kill her, and Bella, for all her eccentricities, had also loved her and enjoyed her company. Khyana was miserable, for one hour of one night, fourteen years after the fact.

* * *

**A/N:**_ Well, it's longer than the last one. Let me know what you guys think, I think this is one of my favourite chapters so far. It shows such different sides of characters we all know and love as evil...I was going to have Bella reappear, but I like it the way it is. I already have my idea for the next chapter, so hopefully it won't take long to update. Although I'm pretty busy over the next little while...R&R!_


	31. Chapter 31

**Chapter 31: Fidelius Charm**

Kelria arrived at the base with the rest of the rescuers and ex-prisoners. No one noticed immediately that Khyana was missing, in light of another bit of news that met them upon arrival.

"Lily!"

James hurried to his wife, who was sitting on a chair, holding eleven-month-old Harry on her lap.

She stood slowly, making sure she didn't wake her sleeping son, to meet James with a grim look on her face. She said something to him very quietly, and he looked very worried.

"What's up, Prongs?" Sirius asked, noting the nervousness on both faces.

"Voldemort's looking for us," James said quietly.

Sirius smiled. "Well yeah, James. Hell, he's looking for all of us! What did you expect? You are in the Order, you know."

"No, Sirius," James cried angrily, exasperated. "He's targeted us. Something to do with a…prophecy?"

Dumbledore looked sharper at that word. "Where'd you hear this?" he demanded.

Lily reached into her pocket, careful not to move Harry too much, and pulled a piece of parchment from her pocket.

"This was sitting on our front porch tonight," she replied, offering it to the Headmaster. "The doorbell rang, and I answered it, but no one was there; just this piece of parchment."

Dumbledore opened the parchment, and the others went and read it over his shoulder.

_Lily and James Potter,_

_Beware a traitor among your friends. Voldemort has heard the prophecy and is coming for you._

Alice Longbottom burst into the room just then, eyes ablaze, clutching her baby very close to herself.

"Frank!"

Frank hurried to her side, very worried by the look on her face.

"Alice, what's wrong?"

Alice couldn't speak, but pulled a piece of parchment from her robes. Frank opened and read it, then looked at Dumbledore.

"It's the same message," he informed him, casting a glance at Lily and James.

Dumbledore closed his eyes sadly and sighed. "I suppose you all have a right to know the whole truth now."

Kelria and Remus exchanged a look. What was the Headmaster talking about?

"Several weeks ago, I was conducting a job interview with Sybill Trelawney. Just as I was about to tell her that I would be in touch--I, of course had no desire to do any such thing, considering the art of divination a fraudulent and petty practise and believing her to embody the word "fraud"--when her mannerisms suddenly changed. She was no longer the whispy, frail woman who had entered the room. Her voice became deep and hoarse. She gave me this prophecy:

"_The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches…born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies…and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not…and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives…the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies…"_

No one said anything as Dumbledore's voice echoed in the silence.

"What does it mean?" Alice whispered nervously.

"It means that you and your sons are in very grave danger," Dumbledore replied seriously. "You must go into hiding. The Fidelius Charm is your only hope now."

James and Lily exchanged looks. "You mean, we're going to have to stay in our house forever?"

Dumbledore shrugged. "Hopefully not forever, James. Just until he stops hunting you."

"Which will be never," James sighed.

Dumbledore gave him an encouraging smile. "You'll still be able to see everyone, and have visitors. You just won't be able to leave."

James let loose an angry sigh. "That's what bothers me. Our house is too small to be cooped up in it for long."

"I'm sorry, James, but I'd rather have you angry with me than dead," Dumbledore replied. "You will both need to choose a Secret Keeper, someone you trust absolutely, and-"

"Padfoot," James said, without hesitation.

Sirius looked surprised. "Are you sure, James?"

"Absolutely," James replied, looking surprised. "Who else can I trust completely?"

Sirius gave him a small smile. "Alright then, Prongs. Whatever you want."

"Frank?" Dumbledore looked expectantly at the other couple.

Frank and Alice exchanged looks, then Frank replied, "Harvey."

Harvey looked as surprised as Sirius had, but also nodded his agreement. "Okay, if that's what you want."

Kelria was also surprised by Frank's choice. She hadn't realised the two were such good friends.

"Very well. If the six of you would please come with me," Dumbledore said, indicating the two couples and two Secret Keepers, "I will perform the spell at the houses. It will need to be done immediately."

The seven of them (plus two babies) Apparated away together, leaving Kelria and Remus alone.

"I guess it's just the two of us now, Kel," Remus sighed. "I feel so bad for the Longbottoms and Potters. James is going to go insane."

Kelria nodded absently; a thought had just struck her. "Hang on…"

"What?"

"It's just the two of us…where's Khyana?"

All colour drained from Remus' face as he realised that Kelria was right: Khyana was not with them.

"I have no idea. She didn't come back with us, did she?"

Kelria shook her head. "No. I'm worried about her, Remus."

Remus nodded. "It's okay, I'm sure she's just at her house. We can go over and check on her, if you like."

Kelria nodded. "I would like that," she agreed.

The two spun on the spot together, Apparating to Khyana's front porch.

"There's a light on," Remus said hopefully. "I'll go look in the window."

Kelria was left alone on the front porch as Remus went to check the living room window to see what Khyana was doing.

He returned shortly, a smile on his face. "She's asleep," he reported, whispering as if Khyana would wake if he spoke too loudly.

Kelria's heart slowed down a little in her relief.

"You need some sleep too, Kel. When was the last time you got a proper night's sleep?" Remus demanded.

Kelria shrugged. "Before I was taken to Malfoy Manor, that's for sure."

"Well then, tonight you will have a proper sleep, if I have to drug you to make sure of it," Remus said firmly, placing his hands on Kelria's shoulders and leading her away from her friend's house.

* * *

**A/N:**_ Okay, I know it's a little short, but it's a transition chapter. I hope to finish this one within a few chapters...I have the prologue and chapter one of the next story done...so I'll put that up when I'm done with this one. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this, R&R please!_


	32. Chapter 32

**Chapter 32: Wedding Plans**

For those in the wider world, the remainder of July, August and September passed in a haze of wedding plans, Order assignments, work and visiting their charmed friends.

At the beginning of October, Kelria and Khyana made a trip to the Potters' home in Godric's Hollow, both excited about wedding plans. Lily was also getting into the swing and excitement of the double wedding, and was thrilled that the wedding was to be held at their house. It was to be a small, private one, with only the Order (minus Snape) and the auror squad in attendance. Alice and Frank would be there very briefly but could not stay long.

"I'm so excited for you two," Lily grinned, bouncing Harry on her knee. The little boy was reaching out for the tiny toy broomstick he had received from his godfather for his first birthday, and Lily was having difficulty restraining him.

"I'm excited too," Khyana admitted, smiling. "I can't wait to get married."

"Me either," Kelria agreed. "I'm so glad you're going to be able to come, Lil."

"Same here," Lily agreed, finally allowing Harry off her lap. He toddled toward the broom happily, and picked it up carefully.

"He's so cute," Kelria smiled, looking at Harry.

"Yeah, he is," Lily agreed, grinning. "He looks like his dad."

"Oh yeah," Khyana agreed. "He has your eyes, though, Lil."

"You think so?"

"Absolutely."

Lily watched her son climb on the broom and begin to zoom around. "James!"

James came into the room, a small smile on his face. "Yes?"

"Will you watch Harry please? I'm trying to plan a double wedding here."

James laughed. "Certainly. Come here, little man."

Father and son left the room, leaving the three women to talk over details.

* * *

Remus and Kelria were out for dinner, both very excited about their upcoming wedding.

"You're sure you're okay with it being on Halloween?" Kelria asked for the millionth time.

"_Yes_, Kelria, if you ask me that again I might have to hit you."

"You wouldn't hit me."

"Watch me."

Kelria laughed. "Love to."

Remus took a sip of his water and grinned at her over his water glass.

"I probably wouldn't hit you."

"I knew it!"

"I'd get Yana to do it for me."

Kelria laughed. "She would, too."

"I know."

The waitress showed up just then with their food, and they were silent for a couple minutes, enjoying their food. If there was one thing Kelria loved about Remus, it was this: the silences between them were never awkward. They were quite content to sit in each other's company and not say a word.

"How many more days until the wedding?" Remus asked finally.

Kelria grinned mischievously. "17."

"Excellent."

Another comfortable silence followed this exchange and Kelria enjoyed her caesar salad and Remus' company, quite content.

* * *

Khyana and Sirius had planned to go out for dinner but the plans had been changed.

"I'm _sorry_, Yana, but I have to go! Dumbledore needs me!"

If pouting would have done her any good, Khyana would have pouted as long as it took, but she knew Sirius could not do anything about the fact that Dumbledore had asked him to go on an Order mission tonight.

"Fine," she said sulkily. "Go. See if I care."

"Yana!" Sirius groaned. "Don't do this."

"Don't do what?"

"Get all sulky on me and make me feel guilty!"

"I'm not!"

"You are so!"

"No I'm not."

Sirius gave up. "Fine. I'll see you later."

"Yeah, whatever."

* * *

The next two weeks passed in blurs. With three days left to the wedding, Khyana and Kelria were both getting pre-wedding jitters.

"I'm excited, but I'm also scared," Khyana admitted quietly.

Kelria nodded. The two women were sitting in Khyana's living room, curled up on the couch with mugs of tea. The TV was on, but they weren't paying attention; Kelria wasn't even sure what was on.

"Me too. I'm excited to marry Remus but…I don't know. It's just strange to think that in three days I'll be Mrs. Remus Lupin." She contradicted her statement by giving Khyana a huge grin. "Kelria Lupin. How does that sound?"

"Strange," Khyana admitted with a smile. "Khyana Black…I dunno. It has a nice ring to it."

The two women laughed. Then Kelria suddenly sobered up.

"You'll always be my sister, right, Yana?"

Khyana gave her a puzzled look. "Of course, Kel. I promised I wouldn't leave you, didn't I?"

"Yeah, I know. I was just making sure."

Khyana reached over and grabbed Kelria's hand. "We're getting married together, Kel. How much closer can two sisters be?"

Kelria grinned. "I don't think even real sisters are that close."

"Probably not," Khyana agreed with a smile. "We've got a one in a million friendship, Kel. You and me. Forever."

* * *

**A/N:**_ Short, I know, but it was another transition one...the next one will be the last and then I'll post the beginning of the next one. I'm very excited! Please R&R!_


	33. Chapter 33

**Chapter 33: Surprise Endings**

Kelria walked home from Khyana's that night with a smile on her face and in her heart. She was glad she had Khyana's friendship, and she knew Khyana was glad for hers. Khyana still felt the loss of Sara every day, but Kelria liked to think that she was doing a little bit to relieve that pain from her friend.

* * *

The day before the wedding dawned bright and clear. Khyana woke from a dream about nine o'clock, and just lay in bed for a moment, a small smile on her face.

"This is my last full day as a single woman. My last day as Khyana Malfoy."

Her smile broadened. She was nervous, but very excited. Her favourite part was getting rid of her family name.

She threw back the covers, sliding her feet into her slippers. She had sold her house several weeks before to a young wizarding couple, and most of her stuff was in boxes, ready to be moved to Sirius' house later that day. She smiled. Sirius was so proud of that house…

* * *

Kelria stood at her stove, bacon and eggs sizzling in the frying pan. She wasn't sure what she was thinking currently. She was excited about getting married tomorrow, and she was certainly excited about becoming Mrs. Remus Lupin. She and Khyana were helping each other move their things to their respective new homes that day, and she was very excited about that too.

The only thing she was sad about about getting married was the fact that her mother would not be present. Her heart started to ache as she thought about it, and she tried to put the thought out of her head.

Khyana rang the doorbell half an hour later, and Kelria answered the door, a huge grin on her face.

"You ready?" Khyana asked, a large smile on her own face.

Kelria nodded. "You?"

"For sure. We'll move your stuff first then go do mine."

"Sounds good."

The two girls each took a couple boxes, made them feather-light, and levitated them out of the house to the car Khyana had rented. They repeated the process until all the boxes were in the enlarged trunk, then got in the car and Khyana drove them to Remus'.

Remus met them at the door with a huge grin.

"Hey, ladies."

"Hey, Lupin, what's up?" Khyana asked, smiling.

"Been waiting for you two for hours, what took you so long?"

Khyana made a face at him as she opened the trunk, and he laughed. "Just kidding, Yana."

The two girls and Remus moved all Kelria's boxes into the house, laughing and joking the whole time.

Very quickly, the job was done and all the boxes were in the house, some of them beginning to be unpacked. Kelria had taken a bit of a break from moving and begun to unpack while her best friend and fiancé moved the rest of her things. Khyana stifled a smile.

"Come on, Kelria, we still have to move my things you know."

"I know, I know. Just give me a second."

"No, Kelria, you can come back when we're done moving my stuff, we don't have all day, you know! We need to go to Lily's and check final details, and go get our final dress fittings and-"

"Okay, okay, I get it! I'm coming!"

Kelria kissed Remus goodbye, Khyana gave him a big smile, and the two headed out of the house back to the car. Khyana quickly drove to her house, and the two friends hurriedly loaded the boxes from there into the trunk, and drove to Sirius'.

Sirius was also waiting for them on the front porch, grinning from ear to ear.

"Hey, beautiful!" he called as Khyana got out of the car.

She grinned at him. "Hey. You got room in that tiny house for all my boxes? I have a lot of stuff, you know."

Sirius laughed. "I'm sure we'll make room for you."

"Good. I would hate to have to stay outside with all my stuff."

Kelria and Sirius laughed, and Sirius came to help them unload all the boxes.

"I'll be back later to start unpacking; we have to get over to Lily's right now."

"Alright. I'll be looking forward to it."

Khyana rolled her eyes, pecked Sirius on the cheek, and climbed back into the car with Kelria.

"Bye," Kelria called as they pulled away. "See you tomorrow!"

Sirius waved until the car was out of sight, and then the two girls started giggling.

"Oh dear me," Khyana sighed, breathing deeply. "I'm so excited about tomorrow, Kel. I won't be a Malfoy anymore!"

Kelria grinned. "I'm so happy for you, Yana. Is that the only reason you're happy to be getting married?"

"No! Of course not!" Khyana protested. "It's just one of the many reasons."

Kelria laughed. "I know. I'm just teasing you, Na."

"Lily will be so happy to see us. I think she's going almost as insane as James, being cooped up in that house."

"Probably. I know I would."

"Same here. Especially when two of my best friends are getting married and making wedding plans and the only time I can participate is when they come visit me."

"Yeah, I'd definitely go insane."

The drive to the Potters' was filled with more small talk, and very soon the two friends pulled up to the Potters' small house, very excited to see Lily, James and Harry.

"Hey all!" Khyana called, as the two entered the house without knocking.

"Hey girls," Lily called back. "I'm in the kitchen making the cake, come on in!"

"Smells delicious, Lily," Khyana commented as the two women entered the kitchen. "Hey, baby," she added, smiling at Harry on the floor. "How's my favourite one-year-old?"

Harry laughed and held out his arms to be picked up. Khyana obliged, cuddling with him until he squirmed to be let down. Kelria and Lily laughed.

"Tough luck, Yana," Lily teased, wiping flour off her hands onto her apron. "Come on through, I have some fabric swatches for you to look at. Harvey is ready and standing by to go get the napkins in whichever colour you pick."

"I can't believe we forgot about napkins," Kelria sighed.

"I can," Khyana replied. "I'm so not detail-oriented at _all_, if I didn't have you two helping me I would not know how to organise a wedding to save my life."

* * *

At five o'clock, Kelria and Khyana bid the Potters goodbye, and headed back to the rental place. Khyana returned the car, and the two found a secluded place to apparate away. They hugged each other before they left, then apparated to their respective fiancés' houses to help unpack.

Kelria arrived at Remus' house about 5 15, eager to get unpacking and get home so she could sleep; the faster she fell asleep, the faster the next day would come.

"Hey, gorgeous," Remus greeted her at the door with a kiss and a rose.

"Aw, Remus, you're so sweet," Kelria cried, delighted.

"I've got most of your things unpacked and organised. If you're not happy with the placement of something, it can be moved."

"I'm sure whatever you've done will be fine," Kelria replied, a big grin on her face.

Remus laughed. "I hope so. Some things I don't want to have to move again."

They unpacked boxes for the next four hours, before Kelria declared that she was going home to bed, or she would fall asleep on her feet…or tomorrow during the wedding. They both agreed that falling asleep during the wedding would be a bad thing, so Remus allowed her to go home, after a quick kiss and an "I love you."

* * *

Kelria lay in bed that night, a big grin on her face. The next day, she would become Mrs. Kelria Lupin. There was nothing that would make her happier.

* * *

The next morning, Khyana woke up, feeling quite content. She hurriedly dressed, then headed over to Lily's.

Lily answered the door, looking radiant in her blue bridesmaid dress, a big grin on her face.

"Khyana! Hi! Come on in, we'll get you all set!"

* * *

Two hours later, Khyana was all set, except for the dress. Kelria still had not shown up, and Khyana was starting to get a little worried.

"I'm going to go over to her house and check on her, Lily, I'll be right back."

"Okay. Don't be too long, you'll miss the wedding."

Khyana smiled. "I wouldn't miss my own wedding, Lily."

Spinning on the spot, Khyana reappeared seconds later at Kelria's house. The colour drained from her face as she saw the house, in ruins, the Dark Mark floating eerily above Kelria's room.

"NO!" Khyana screamed, running into the house.

She found Kelria's body spread-eagle on the hall floor, her eyes and mouth open in an expression of utter shock and surprise.

"KELRIA!" Khyana screamed, beginning to sob.

Sirius and Remus found her there half an hour later. She had not changed positions, though her screams had subsided due to her now hoarse voice.

Sirius pulled her to her feet. She sobbed into his shoulder as Remus knelt beside his dead fiancée.

"Remus, I'm so sorry," Khyana managed to get out between sobs.

Remus looked up at her, the pain on his face indescribable. Khyana wished there was something she could do, but could think of nothing.

* * *

Khyana and Sirius decided to postpone their wedding, out of respect for Kelria, though it pained both of them to do so. Khyana didn't know what she was going to do without her best friend. She did not know that within twenty four hours of losing Kelria, she would lose James and Lily as well, and within another twelve hours, she would also lose Sirius. Her life was changed forever.

* * *

**A/N:**_ AAAWWWWWWWEEEEEEE!!! I'm so sad Kelria's dead! But it had to happen:(. Please don't kill me. The next story will be up presently! Lots of love, Khyana._


End file.
